May 2005

Shouting from the Rooftops!
Chicago’s Green Champions Share Techniques for Growing More Green Roofs on More Buildings

By Vuk Vujovic, LEED AP and Douglas J. Ogurek


Several years ago, Chicago’s Mayor Richard Daley – recently named one of Time magazine’s five best big city mayors – went to Germany. He admired the country’s progression in green roof technology – so much so that he resolved to bring green roofs to Chicago.

So in 2001, Chicago’s venture into sustainability began at the very top…literally; the installation of the City’s first major green roof above City Hall shouted out the City Government’s ambitious goal: to become the greenest city in the nation.

Now, the City is well on its way to meeting that goal; the GreenGuide.com ranks Chicago among “America’s top 10 green cities.” And many cities are beginning to follow its example.

In June, 2004, Chicago had completed or planned over 80 green roofs totaling over one million square feet. Today – less than a year later – the figure is closer to 120 green roofs totaling between 1.5 million and 2 million square feet. And those numbers exclude two of the largest green roofs in the world: those at Millennium Park and Soldier Field.

City Hall’s green roof broadcasted the City’s intentions with a more complex, intensive green roof system. Then, the City proved to the local community just how effective green roofs are; a simpler, more affordable extensive green roof system was installed on the Center for Green Technology, one of the first LEED Platinum-certified facilities in the country. Test pods on this system compared six different green roof technologies to three conventional roofing materials.

Although Chicago is the Windy City, the vegetation that stretches across its sky did not simply blow in from somewhere else. It took a great deal of political gardening and systems testing…all backed by a “do-it-yourself” mindset.

To prove its commitment to green roofs (and environmental responsibility in general), the City appointed experts in sustainability to take the helm. Recently, two of these green champions, Sadhu Johnston (SJ) and Michael Berkshire (MB), sat down with us to discuss the City’s “leading by example” philosophy, as well as the steps the City took and the challenges it overcame to crown so many buildings in green. As Assistant to the Mayor [Daley] for Green Initiatives, Johnston ensures that all City agencies practice environmentally-sound strategies. Before coming to Chicago, he founded and led the Cleveland Green Building Coalition. Berkshire is the Green Projects Administrator for the City’s Department of Planning & Development. He functions as a liaison between the Mayor’s office and his department. He is also co-chair of a policy committee established by Green Roofs for Healthy Cities.

Q: The City Hall was the City’s first major facility to showcase green roof technology. Were you targeting a particular building type in the early stages?

MB: Instead of targeting buildings, we wanted to look at demonstration projects for different types of green roof systems. City Hall is a nice example of an intensive, elaborate rooftop garden. The Center for Green Technology is a beautiful example of a very simple extensive roof system with a simple palette of seed and grasses. The CTA (Chicago Transit Authority) station along the red line is a modular system created right here in Chicago. Now, as we’re retrofitting various buildings, we’re still using a variety of green roof systems. Many of those are modular systems. We’re looking at more of the veneer type systems too.

Q: It seemed that the natural first step was to install a green roof on your own building, then slowly introduce green roofs into the market. We saw a new Target store and new Wal-Mart are getting green roofs. Is the City of Chicago trying to get “big box” stores to implement green roofs now?

SJ: The Mayor really likes to lead by example. When there’s some new technology, a new approach, or a new strategy that he discovers or we introduce to him, we lead by example; we try these things ourselves. Once we’ve tried them and we think they work, we start to develop policies and programs to encourage or require the private sector to adopt them. We try it and test it – see how much it costs, what maintenance is, if it provides the benefits we thought it would. And the City Hall green roof is the perfect example. The Mayor went to Europe, saw it there, brought it back, and said, “Let’s do one.” We tried different types of green roofs on different types of buildings and saw that they worked, and said OK how do we expand this? And that’s where we’re going with the private buildings.

We created this [Building Green/Green Roof] Matrix and we’re trying to encourage the private sector. Initially, we had mixed results. Some were willing to try it and others were interested in leading the charge. Concurrently, we started to create incentives and density bonuses for buildings in the downtown area where stormwater issues are significant. When we realized that those incentives, although encouraging, weren’t enough, we created a policy that effectively requires publicly funded private structures to include green roofs. That’s why you’re seeing “big box” stores integrating these. As you’ll see in the Matrix, we are not singling out “big box” stores, but they do have a huge footprint.

Q: The “big box” stores seem to be an ideal building type for green roof applications, and it’s here that you can combine the two.

SJ: The way we see this Matrix, and our requesting and in some cases requiring the private sector to come on board, is that we’re giving them financial incentives, Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) support or land write-downs, for instance, to build in the City. The City is responsible for the environment in many ways: energy infrastructure, stormwater, bringing them fresh water, dealing with waste. So we’re asking them to minimize their negative impact on the City. That’s how we justify it. We take it further than many cities do.

Q: It seems you’re taking an active role, and you’re not letting things slide; there’s a very firm policy. It’s interesting to see that at first, there is unbelief or skepticism. And when you show that you do mean business, everybody follows along. Do you have any numbers regarding green roofs in the City?

In December, 2003, Chicago used the historic [Fire] Engine Company #98 to introduce green roof technology to its prestigious “Gold Coast” neighborhood. Photo Copyright courtesy of City of Chicago.

SJ: 120 green roofs have been completed, are under construction, or are in design.

MB: They’re totaling between 1.5 million to 2 million square feet. Those totals do not include two of largest green roofs in world: Millennium Park and the Stadium.

SJ: We recently received an international award last year for [Soldier Field].

MB: We’re up for an award for Millennium Park’s green roof as well. It is one of the largest green roofs in the world.

Q: Are there any policies that have been particularly effective?

MB: Our density bonus works well in the downtown area because it can provide quite a bit of money to the developer if it can build another three condos priced anywhere between half a million to $2 million. About eight projects have taken advantage of that density bonus.

Q: What type of projects?

MB: Mainly high-rise office buildings.

Q: City Hall was created to be visible from the surrounding downtown so everybody can see you “leading by example.” As more green roofs are installed, how do you make them public? For instance, high-rise rooftops are hard to see.

MB: We’re working on that. We are collaborating with the School of the Art Institute on various projects to help promote the sustainable message and take the information that we have to make it more exciting and palatable to the general public. We are also updating the City’s website to have a page about green roofs. It will be somewhat interactive and have a map showing where all the green roofs in the City. Surfers will be able to click on it, see a photo, and read a description about each roof. This is what we’re talking about… a site where people can learn about green roofs and their benefits.

The quantity of green roofs we have has much to do with this [“Building Green/Green Roof Matrix”] policy. It went from an initiative where we were pushing green roofs to an actual policy that was published. That was the real turning point. When we became transparent in what we were asking, people said, “OK, we understand this is the policy, and we’re all being treated equitably.”

Before, developers didn’t know what we were going to ask until they sat down at the table. And that just didn’t work.

SJ: And they tried to negotiate with us. We’ve learned that we need to be very clear about what our expectations are, provide them in writing, and be equitable about them. And in the early stages we weren’t as clear about what we wanted from folks that we were providing support to. So writing it out is very important. Since this was created, we’ve seen the number of green roofs skyrocket. And the support within the development community increased. There was skepticism about our motives, complaining, and in some cases resentment that we were increasing the costs of development in the city. Since we’ve stated our goals and expectations, that has really decreased; people know what to expect when they come in to work with us.

Q: Have you found that there’s a decrease in installation costs because of the number of contractors?

MB: I haven’t seen a significant decrease. We hear stories once in a while of a low quote. We did just complete an RFI [Request for Information] and sent it to all providers we know of. We asked for several things: what parts of the system do they provide? What types of partnerships have they created to provide sustainable systems? And also what their pricing structure is. Not all of them provided pricing information.

SJ: We received a good spectrum of pricing information…from $8/sf. to $20/sf.

MB: It was an exercise to find out who’s out there, who’s providing what, and what the costs are. But we also used it to encourage further collaboration and partnerships between landscape companies, roofing companies, etc.

Q: There’s so much different technology too. Green roofs are not just a single type. Is there a thought that a locally-produced technology could be developed?

SJ: There are some companies that do that already. We had not thought about it from that angle. We have been trying to find a way to connect folks to bring down that cost. For instance, some may have a cheaper tray, while their soil is more expensive. Some may have access to the cheaper soil, but may not have the plants. So we’re trying to encourage unique partnerships based on local resources.

Q: Where do you see yourself in 5/10 years? What is your vision long-term?

MB: We’re looking at taking the requirements of the policy and adding them to the building code in the long-run so that many of these things become the building standard – not just a policy – in Chicago.

SJ: In Germany, you need a variance if you’re not installing a green roof. I don’t know if we’ll be there in the next 5-10 years, but our vision is that all new major projects in the City would have a green roof. Costs would come down enough and technology would familiar enough that it would be standard practice.

Q: Why did Chicago start installing green roofs in the first place?

SJ: The big goal behind green roofs is to address the heat island effect and reduce the energy consumption of the City. The other major reason is the stormwater; we have major stormwater problems in the city. Other reasons include wildlife habitat, beautification, cleansing the air, acoustical benefits, etc.

MB: That’s why the test pods for the Center for Green Tech are very important. There are six green roof plots and they’re being monitored as far as their ability to lower the temperatures of the structure underneath them and the ambient temperature compared to a gravel ballast roof, a white reflective roof, and a dark roof. The City also bought a weather machine to monitor the stormwater mitigation performance on each pod.

The testing was result of a series of focus groups when we were trying to develop this policy. We brought together developers, architects, engineers, and talked to them about their issues and concerns about green roofs in particular. They said they want to make sure they work here in Chicago. The plants will live here and it is important that green roofs perform the way we say they will.

Q: You mentioned the two most important green roof goals being stormwater management and reducing the heat island effect. Do you have any data on that?

MB: There is an annual report available on the Department of the Environment’s website.

Q: Have you been able to marry this initiative with Chicago Public Schools?

SJ: Yes. On several of them.

MB: There is a new school in Marquette Park. The [Chicago] Park District is housed in part of building, and a portion of the roof is covered in vegetation. One of the biggest lagoons in the city is in that park. There is an issue with the balance of water; the level of the lagoon keeps fluctuating, which affects the habitat and plants. Initially, to stop that fluctuation, they used city water, which has algae-causing phosphates. The run-off from the green roof will go through a series of storage tanks. They will use that water to maintain the level of lagoon instead of city water.

Q: Was this developed as a prototype or just an opportunity?

MB: It was an opportunity there. And we encouraged them to do it.

SJ: But if it works there, we’ll use the idea. We are doing the same with McCormick Place. It will be LEED certified and have a green roof. Also, a large tunnel will take all stormwater run-off from that roof plus the other roofs straight into the lake.

Those kind of visible projects are critical. The new Rock ‘N Roll McDonald’s is another good example. The second story of the restaurant looks down on a green roof. So it shows and teaches this new technology to the general public.

Q: It seems that having this Matrix – something solid – is very important. If I were mayor of a smaller city and I were thinking about beginning a green roof initiative, what advice would you give me?

SJ: I’d tell you to try it on one of your own buildings first. Do a high-visibility demonstration. Then you pique interest, generate newspaper stories, and start to engage the benefits. We’ve been monitoring our rooftop for temperature differential from the county side for last few years. [Note: the Chicago City Hall and Cook County Building are located in the same building. Only the City Hall side has a green roof.] So we collect that data, then expand it.

I would not ever suggest that you go and create a matrix without having done some examples.

Q: You used the phrase “leading by example.” Have you seen any sort of green roof development in other cities that might lead you to believe that they were inspired by what you’ve done here?

SJ: Now cities like Toronto, Seattle, New York, and Portland are developing initiatives. We have thousands of visitors every year coming to City Hall. There’s definitely a lot of learning that other cities are taking advantage of from our experiences. While I do feel we are leading the charge, we’re not alone in the pack.

Do It, Prove It, Move It
Over fifty years ago, Jonas Edward Salk developed a medicine. He tested it on himself. It worked. Then he distributed it. The medicine – now well known as the polio vaccine – saved many lives.

Chicago’s “leading by example” approach is not much different than Salk’s method: the City recognized a serious problem (stormwater, heat, and energy management); it found a solution (green roofs and other sustainable systems); and it gave itself a shot in the arm – namely, the installation of green roof systems on its own buildings – to see if it worked. It did work. Then the City developed initiatives and policies to distribute its discovery.

So “leading by example” boils down to a simple formula: do it, prove it, move it.

As other municipalities begin to consider green roofs, they will benefit by following Chicago’s model…because it works. Like Salk and his vaccine, municipalities that develop green roof initiatives will lead to a healthier society. It just takes a “go get ‘em” attitude and a willingness to practice what they preach.
 

Vuk Vujovic, LEED AP is Director of Sustainable Design at Legat Architects, Inc. He has piloted the firm’s movement toward sustainable design practices. In his quest to make high-performance design a standard, Vujovic is focused on edifying architects and the general public about sustainability. He has also visited various schools and colleges to teach students and faculty about the benefits of healthy school buildings. In September, he will present “Integrating Sustainable Design into Educational Buildings” at the 2005 World Sustainable Building Conference in Tokyo, Japan.

Vujovic is also a member of the Healthy and High Performing School Task Force, working with the Capital Development Board and Illinois Healthy School Campaign to produce new standards and design criteria for Illinois high-performance educational facilities. Vujovic holds a Master of Science in Management degree from Purdue University and a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Belgrade School of Architecture.

Douglas J. Ogurek is a member of the Educational Team at Legat Architects, Inc. He regularly contributes to architectural and sustainable industry publications. Ogurek holds a Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications degree from Roosevelt University and a Bachelor of Arts in English degree from Carthage College.

Legat Architects, Inc., founded in 1964, is a full-service design firm that strives to bridge the gap between the built and natural environment. Its 75 employees (including seven LEED Accredited Professionals) operate from four Chicago area studios. Legat Architects promotes high-performance design that benefits building owners and gives back to communities.

For more information, contact Vuk Vujovic at 312.756.1266 or vvujovic@legat.com.