The South Connection: Evo and More

The South Connection: Evo and More


The South Group is a developement group based in Oregon that in collaboration with eco-consious developers Williams & Dame and Gerding/Edlen have created an urban oasis in the Los Angeles California nieghborhood of South Park. This green neighborhood is the first of its kind in Los Angeles and has sold its units at a record breaking pace. Its community consists of an eventual 4 highrise buildings including residential and retail spaces. Thus far they have received a Gold LEED certification on the Elleven and Luma buildings and a Silver certification on the EVO building. The fourth building that is yet to be finished is titled "South Figueroa". This is an image of the Livingroom in one of Evo's luxury condominiums. As you can see from the picture, they make use of many sustainable products and philosophies. The product displayed in this shot is first and most obviously the Bamboo flooring. The philosophy displayed is the use of site orientation to maximize climatic conditions, daylighting and openable windows for optimal air quality. This companies drive to go 'Green' is not just shown in their finished design, they are green from the ground up. In these buildings they have ensured that even what is behind the walls and floors is up to the LEED standards...and above. High rise buildings consume 40% of all material and energy flows. The South Group hopes to combat this through their use of high-efficiency water source heat pumps, high-efficiency domestic hot water systems, high performance glazing to reduce solar heat gain, increased insulation throughout the building process, high-efficiency lighting systems and so much more. Evo was designed to reduce energy use by up to 15% above the national standards. The idea of 'ground up' is present due to the fact that 75% of the buildings construction waste materials were recycled.

The residences are equiped with stainless steel energy star appliances and the penthouse boasts Viking Stainless Steel refrigerators, cooktops and convection ovens. The countertop surfaces are an eco-friendly Caesarstone which is a composite that makes use of aggregate, glass and other recycleable materials.

The kitchens and baths are both adorned with rich wood or wheatboard cabinetry in either stained Walnut or Natural Jaquitiba, White Oak, or Teak. They have tried to maximize the use of local materials. The baths also make use of low-flow/ultra low-flow fixtures as well as dual flush toilets. The other design features include limestone countertops, slate and marble floors, Kohler sinks and fixtures and a vessel sink in the powder rooms.

The exterior of the buildings in this record selling community is in keeping with the overall policies of the building group and Evo's architect Ankrom Moisan, with 24 foot sidewalks, lush gardens, open green spaces, fountains, gathering areas, benches and access to public transportation. The Metro Blue, buses and a one year membership (complimentary upon moving into the building) to the Flexcar program which is located just across the street.

Upon browsing the Evo Residence Handbook I was interested to find that they offer a remodelers guide. In this guide it gives websites and reference material on how to go 'Green'.
Some of the tips are as easy as low VOC paint and finishes, but it also includes how to find out if your contractor will or can recycle the waste materials from your individual projects. Their Handbook goes over Construction Activities, Controlling indoor pollutants, water conservation, energy conservation, material selection, off gasing information and carpet selection. I was very impressed with the follow thru to insure that this building continues to excell as a 'Green' environment. The developement group has also included a resource for Green Cleaning products. They are in partnership with Coastwide Laboratories making provisions for environmentally friendly cleaning supplies and products to be available to all of its residence and tenants at Evo with a free 6 month supply. http://www.coastwidelabs.com/

The buildings also provide recycling on site with its state of the art interior recycling and sorting facility open to all residence and tenants.

As you can see a great deal of thought and planning went into ensuring that this project would be a model for future construction in the LA area. This company has taken an environmentally responsible stand and come out on top with a wonderful project in which other projects and developers should be judged.

I hope you enjoyed my research project, please feel free to comment. Thank you for your time.

By: Mel Riva

REFERENCE:

LEED for commercial interiors
http://www.usbgc.org/
City of LA SustainLA
http://www.sustainla.org/
California Intergrated Wastewater Management Board
www.ciwmb.ca.gov/GreenBuilding
City of Los Angeles, Department of Public Works, Bureau of Sanitation
www.lacity.org/san
Sheet Medal and Air Conditioning National Contractors Association (SMACNA)
www.smacna.org/bookstore
U.S. Department of Energy FEMP ----------------Dual Flush Toilets by Kohler
www.eere.energy.gov/femp/ ---------------------http://www.caromause.com/
Southern California Gas --------------------------LA Department of Water and Power
http://www.socalgas.com/----------------------- http://www.ladwp.com/
California Public Utilities Commission -------------Energy Star
http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/------------------------- http://www.energystar.gov/
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
http://www.eere.energy.gov/
Resources to Purchase Green Power or Green Tags
Renewable Choice Energy----------------------- 3 Phases Energy
http://www.renewablechoice.com/-------------- http://www.b-e-f.org/
3 Phases Energy
http://www.b-e-f.org/
Resource for Light Conservation
Illuminating Engineering Society of North America
http://www.iesna.org/
Energy Design Resource
www.energydesignresources.com/category/lighting
Resources for Low-VOC Paint
Kelly Moore
http://www.kellymoore.com/
FrazeePaint-EnviroKote
http://www.frazeepaint.com/
Sinan Company Spectra-tone Paint Company
http://www.sinanco.com/ http://www.spectra-tone.com/
Resource for Adhesives and Sealants
John Latta Associates --------------------------Titebond
800-444-8877--------------------------------- http://www.titebond.com/
Speed Grip ------------------------------------Timber-tek UV Wood Finishes
http://www.geoceluse.com/------------------- http://www.timberprocoating.com/
Resource for Carpet
Carpet and Rug Institute ----------------------Environmentally Responsible Carpet Choices
http://www.carpet-rug.com/------------------ www.metrokc.gov/procure/green/carpet.htm
Green Seal Report on Carpet
www.greenseal.org/resources/reports/CGR_carpet.pdf
Resource for Flooring
American Bamboo Society ---------------------Forest Stewardship Council
http://www.americanbamboo.org/------------ http://www.fscus.org/
Resource for Green Furnishings
Herman Miller Inc. ----------------------------Haworth, Inc.
http://www.hermanmiller.com/--------------- http://www.haworth.com/
Knoll ------------------------------------------Jules Seltzer Associates
http://www.knoll.com/ ------------------------http://www.julesseltzer.com/