AIANYS Fall 2017 Quarterly: Resilient Design

ARCHITECTURE NEW YORK STATE

ARCHITECTURE NEW YORK STATE

CONTRIBUTING TO THIS ISSUE:

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ERIC FANG, AIA | PERKINS EASTMAN ILLYA AZAROFF, AIA | +LAB ARCHITECT, PLLC RICHARD KAHN, AIA | CANNNONDESIGN DANIEL HORN, ASSOC. AIA | ORLI+ JEFFREY SMITH, AIA | CHIANIS + ANDERSON ARCHITECTS, PLLC

RESILIENT DESIGN ISSUE

A PUBLICATION OF

>> Front Cover: Photo courtesy of Beyer Blinder Belle >> Edited by Nick Issacs FALL 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 Designing the Resilient Community 8 Don’t Bother Planning for the Next Sandy. She isn’t coming.

9 Designing for Multi-Dimensional Resiliency in Healthcare 13 Building Holistic Resilience After Disaster 18 Merging Observation and Common Sense for Resilient Design

“We cannot stop natural disasters but we can arm ourselves with knowledge.”

program will be training required by the State of New York to be certified and qualified to respond to disasters under the liability umbrella of New York State.

- Petra Nemcova The articles in this issue of Architecture New York State illustrate what Nemcova was referring to in her quote.

In his article “Designing the Resilient Community,” Eric Fang, AIA, introduces us to the impact of climate change on cities around the world. Using studies completed by the Center for Climate Energy, Fang goes on to explain that many times this type of work is delegated to the engineer. The architect’s skills of “how to make a community more resilient” and “what a community should be” are critical to long term and successful resiliency solutions. The role that knowledge plays in resilient design is highlighted in the Kahn article, “Designing for Multi-Dimensional Resiliency in Healthcare.”

Whether it is Architect Jeff Smith, AIA, walking into flood-ravaged communities to help citizens with supplies, recovery knowledge and his knowledge of historic properties, critically needed in the Owego area; or Daniel Horn, Associate AIA, mobilizing Long Island citizens after Hurricane Sandy, architects are using knowledge far beyond what they learned in school to meet the challenges of climate change. Illya Azaroff, AIA, drives this point home in his article on preparedness, “Don’t Bother Planning for the Next Sandy. She Isn’t Coming.”

I would be remiss if I did not mention the training that has been going on the last few months in New York City.

Architects Illya Azaroff, Mark Kruse, and Tim Boyland, all AIA members, have been teaching programs on structural assessment. All three of the programs have been taught on Sundays at the Center for Architecture and all three of the sessions have sold out. The next step for many of the architects who have completed the

In closing, my year as President of AIANYS is coming to an end. It has been a busy year that has taken me all over the country meeting dedicated members of the design community to converse on how we can continue to elevate the importance of the profession, of good design and the American Institute of Architects. I also have met men and women here in New York who are in the forefront of resilience and design both in research and practical use. Their work will continue to benefit and protect the citizens who live and work in our communities and buildings.

I am confident that over this past year we have made a difference. We had the opportunity to share ideas with our colleagues from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, in the highly successful QUAD conference.

We continue our diligence in shepherding our legislative agenda in Albany and have been an integral part of conversations on the design discussions of interstate I-81 project in Syracuse, New York. We continue to encourage and support our members and chapters to be leaders in their own communities.

This year has brought me a new perspective on the architectural community, the individuals who make it great, and the impact we all have on everyday lives.

My very best wishes for the New Year.

Robert E Stark, AIA President AIA New York State

>> Front cover photo: Village of Island Park Flood Map, provided by Perkins Eastman >> Edited by Carla Schlist

FROM OUR PRESIDENT

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DESIGNING THE RESILIENT COMMUNITY

By Eric Fang AIA, LEED AP, AICP | Principal, Perkins Eastman

>> In the past several years, the issue of climate change has swept into our collective consciousness with the devastation of Hurricane Irene and Superstorm Sandy. Much of the attention has been drawn to the issue of coastal inundation, and the kinds of heroic coastal resiliency infrastructure initiatives, like the Thames Barrier in London or the “Big U” in lower Manhattan, that are designed to fortify some of the world’s most famous, and valuable, urban districts. While coastal flooding from rising sea levels has understandably dominated media coverage and debate here in the Northeast, a more endemic, and arguably far reaching effect of climate change has remained relatively unexamined: the increased incidence of extreme precipitation events that are caused by warmer air and contain higher amounts of water vapor.

great as that seen by the region with the next largest increase, the upper Midwest, which saw an increase of 37%. And while these numbers are daunting, it is important to understand the impact increased flooding from ever-increasing heavy precipitation events will have on everyday life. Extreme precipitation events, and the flooding associated with them, will impede people’s ability to get to work and get their kids to school; it will undermine critical infrastructure like passenger and freight railroads, and community facilities like hospitals. In general, it will adversely impact commerce and quality of life for tens of millions of people in the region, and reduce overall productivity. One only need look at present-day Guangzhou and Mumbai, which have been frequently cited as among the world cities subject to the highest levels of debilitating flooding, to get a sense of how the future may impact the According to the Center for Climate and Energy cities and towns of the Northeast. Findings from the Solutions, an independent non-profit devoted to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration studying and advising on critical climate and energy (NOAA) suggest that extreme precipitation events challenges, the combined Northeastern and Midwill continue to increase in frequency everywhere Atlantic region of the United States has seen a 71% in the United States, but with particular intensity increase in the amount of precipitation falling in very in the Northeast and Midwest regions (as well as heavy events from 1958-2012, a jump nearly twice as the Northwest and Alaska); by the latter part of this

>> Photo courtesy of Perkins Eastman

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>> Photos courtesy of Perkins Eastman

century, it’s estimated that such events will occur twice as often.

Addressing flooding has traditionally, and almost exclusively, been the domain of civil engineers. Indeed, designing drainage systems and constructing levees have long been the core competency of the profession. But as flooding becomes more common and starts reaching further into the fabric of our neighborhoods and downtowns, the value of employing a broader set of skills, and bringing them together through design thinking, has been increasingly recognized. As sea levels rise, visual impacts as well as impacts on the circulation patterns of everyday life will figure more prominently. And as the associated costs to address these issues increases, leveraging infrastructure investments for additional benefits will not just be an added advantage, but will become a necessity.

The skills and insights architects can bring to these challenges will be increasingly important, especially as the question pivots from considering how to make communities more resilient to what a resilient community should be. Architects are uniquely qualified to not only explain the complex engineering, economic, regulatory, and scientific issues associated with community resiliency, but illustrate their potential impact on the landscape and workings of daily life. And most importantly, architects are equipped to synthesize these complex, and often competing sets of facts, into a singular vision that can gain community consensus.

The simplest applications can be seen in the design of entirely new communities in fragile environmental contexts. In these situations, building in resilience is merely a matter of good design. The plan for Arverne by-the-Sea, in New York City’s Rockaway Peninsula,

is one such example. Situated precariously between Jamaica Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, in one of the most vulnerable locations in all of New York City, Arverne by-the-Sea was the result of a rigorous planning framework established by the City of New York’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, and a design process led by EE&K Architects, prior to its merger with Perkins Eastman, which wove grey infrastructure seamlessly into a larger landscape vocabulary of a mid-Atlantic oceanfront community.

In the City of Hoboken, our team, post-merger, was charged by Mayor Dawn Zimmer to get the most “bang for the buck” for the city as it contemplated implementation of a seemingly interchangeable menu of best stormwater management practices.

Here, we were able to put to use our architectural training in reconciling a complex mix of data, personal experience, and insights into the physical fabric of the city, to create a cost-effective green infrastructure strategic plan that integrated into the design and construction of public improvements, private development, open space, and right-of-way projects.

During storm events, Hoboken’s combined sewer infrastructure is overtaxed, resulting in system backups that produce flooding in the lowest-lying areas and combined sewer overflows into the Hudson River. In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene and Superstorm Sandy, unprecedented flood levels crippled Hoboken’s heavily-trafficked transportation infrastructure, stranded residents in their homes, destroyed personal and public property, and intensified public health hazards. The storms also brought commercial activity to a halt, collectively costing business and property owners millions of dollars in lost revenue. >> continued on next page

DESIGNING THE RESILIENT COMMUNITY

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>> Photo courtesy of Perkins Eastman

Working with an interdisciplinary team that included Louis Berger, we were able to employ a sewershed-level analysis to determine where green infrastructure would be most beneficial, given subsurface conditions and neighborhood context.

Our Plan analyzed the capital and life cycle costs for a full menu of green infrastructure strategies to gauge the cost effectiveness of each, providing the city with a guide for prioritizing the most cost effective green infrastructure BMPs. The linchpin of the Plan is a conceptual framework that organizes the city into three zones: • The Gray Zone: most appropriate for aboveground BMPs such as rainwater harvesting and green roofs that detain stormwater; • The Green Zone: most appropriate for vegetated BMPs like rain gardens, swales, and stormwater trees that infiltrate stormwater; and • The Blue Zone: most appropriate for retention of stormwater, using BMPs such as constructed wetlands.

The framework is scalable from the site to neighborhood level, enabling incremental implementation of green infrastructure BMPs to yield a cumulative benefit. It also provides an understandable and easy way to communicate the concept for residents, business owners, developers, facilities managers, and city and state agencies to follow.

The team tailored solutions, ranging from smallscale capture and infiltration in already densely

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developed areas to potential establishment of district-level stormwater trust funds in redevelopment areas, to the city’s development patterns and natural conditions. In doing so, the Plan enhances existing development and creates the opportunity for green infrastructure to forge connections between different parts of the city. The Plan was adopted by the city as part of its “Sustainable Hoboken” initiative and helped the city win more than $100 million in federal funding to implement widespread resiliency measures.

The Village of Island Park, a small town on the south shore of Long Island’s Nassau County, isn’t on the front lines of the Atlantic Ocean like Arverne or its neighbor to the south, the City of Long Beach, but the village’s downtown sees flooding serious enough to put its main traffic intersection and adjacent shops under several feet of water during high tides. Downtown Island Park has been battered not only by chronic flooding, but also by changing demographics and shifting shopping patterns and internet commerce. In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, in early 2013, the New York Governor’s Office for Storm Recovery commissioned a Rebuilding and Reconstruction Plan for the area, which in term awarded the village funds to develop a long-term plan to “augment stormwater management as part of other efforts to revitalize the existing Long Beach Road business district.” The NY Rising study revealed that events like Irene and Sandy only exacerbated an already overworked stormwater system, and due to resulting damage, parts of Island Park saw flooding during normal rainfalls and high-tide events; another major storm event was forecast to cause catastrophic system failures.

As home to over 2,000 residents and with average prices exceeding a half million dollars (in 2015 numbers), as well as critical transit infrastructure like the Long Island Railroad’s Long Beach Line running through it, retreat was not an option. Although the village was deemed eligible by the NY Rising Program for up $7.4 million, as part of a Community Development Block Grant, for improvements to its stormwater management system, it was clear

that this would not be enough to create long-term resiliency and that even with additional private investment, the village’s downtown was in need of reinvention to meet the challenges of the coming era.

Perkins Eastman led an interdisciplinary team of designers, civil engineers, traffic engineers, economists, and retail specialists to establish a new direction for the village’s downtown. The resulting Downtown Revitalization and Transit Oriented Development Plan creates a vision for a walkable mixed-use district along the town’s main street, Long Beach Road, oriented around transit, and incorporating a combination of grey and green infrastructure to address downtown’s flooding.

The Revitalization Plan is aimed at broadening the appeal of Downtown Island Park to a younger demographic, creating the setting for new development, leveraging public transit, and creating a community that offers more affordable residential options – notably scarce in Long Island – for young people and seniors alike. The plan recommended a suite of streetscape enhancements to Long Beach Road to transform it into a more pedestrian friendly environment, including traffic-calming measures like corner bulb-outs and mid-block

>> Photos courtesy of Perkins Eastman

crossings that also incorporate rain gardens. To provide a focus for the new downtown, the plan replaces an existing commuter surface parking lot with a new civic park that also serves as a welcoming plaza for commuters and the setting for a new Village Hall which replaces the old facility destroyed during Sandy. These recommendations are designed to work in the near term with the existing drainage system. They also complement longer term recommendations to improve the downtown’s grey infrastructure of stormwater pipes and conveyances.

As the Northeast looks ahead to meeting the challenges of a changing climate, it needs to confront the far-reaching impacts of more frequent stormwater flooding on everyday life and the urban landscape.

This shift will require a broad set of technical skills, major financial investments, and extraordinary political focus, but it will also offer an opportunity for re-envisioning and reinvention. Just as architects played the leading role in the rebuilding of London after the Great Fire of 1666, which decimated the city, and the reconstruction of Europe after World War II, this is a role that architects can and must take up in the coming era.

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DON’T BOTHER PLANNING FOR THE NEXT SANDY. SHE ISN’T COMING. Proactive resiliency planning must drive the next phase of storm preparedness. >> Like the cries of a preacher warning of the second coming, the call heard often in recent days was, “Prepare for the next Hurricane Sandy!” A compelling charge, for sure, but it was also the wrong one.

While Sandy exposed vulnerabilities in some of the most densely populated urban areas of the country, she isn’t coming back. Ever again.

The massive rebuild effort from Sandy’s devastating blow began five years ago and much progress has been made. The New York City Office of Housing Recovery’s controversial “Build it Back” program has stumbled to helped thousands of people living in communities impacted by Sandy rebuild in sustainable and resilient ways. Yet many are still waiting.

Climate change and weather events demand innovative planning and design to protect our communities and the built environment. Architects are leading the way.

Architects, design, and construction experts have worked on hundreds of projects throughout the region to enhance quality of life and protect communities. The design of natural barriers such as parks, boardwalks, and other green space now help contain flood waters and channel water away from low-lying areas. A major Manhattan museum has watertight doors and a means to divert water away from precious installations. Many homes have been raised above the floodplain or built with a concrete foundation system made to withstand the energy from a 500-year storm surge. We are achieving one dimensional resilience to water impacts.

Much of this phase one work, though, was designed to mitigate the risks that were presented by Sandy. This is not uncommon in the aftermath of major natural disasters. In fact, in 2012, storm preparation in the New York area was “reactive,” based largely upon the impact of the prior year’s Irene. And it wasn’t enough for Sandy’s massive storm surge that created unprecedented inundation and deadly flooding.

Phase two of post-Sandy recovery, which we enter now, requires proactive resiliency planning and zoning. New York must more fully embrace a holistic approach to preparing for future weather events, risks beyond torrential rain: highly destructive winds; deadly temperature extremes; or massive infrastructure failures, such as public water, power or telecommunications. Weaned, we must plan not only for today but for the next 50-100 year time frame to achieve fourdimensional resilience.

Heavy winds demand more rigorous construction practices and hardened infrastructure, such as waterproofed, underground power transmission and distribution. While such steps are costly, they have been implemented in parts of Florida and proved successful when Hurricane Irma hit this year.

By Illya Azaroff, AIA

Dangerously high or low temperatures can be better managed with more secure power and power backup, along with steps such as insulation that lessens the impact of swings in temperature. The orientation of new construction and the use of sunlight exposure, and other good passive design approaches, can also improve resiliency in the face of temperature extremes.

Mitigating the risk of massive infrastructure failures which can disrupt water, sewer, power, and, of increasing concern, internet service, will, among other actions, benefit from long-term commitments to distributed energy that are tied to small neighborhood or community microgrids. Local power production is highly efficient and essential to resilient neighborhoods and cities. Traditional grid distribution loses 70% of the power produced in lengthy transmission (30% efficiency) to the user local district energy or microgrids have between 80-90% energy retention.

Such proactive planning will require cooperation between the public and private sector, as does the kind of reactive planning that will improve safety in the event of major storm events that are bound to occur before these new protections are in place.

The American Institute of Architects New York State (AIANYS) is working with the New York State Department of State to expand the Code Enforcement Disaster Assistance Response (CEDAR) program. Immediately after storms that damage buildings and infrastructure, CEDAR brings together licensed design professionals, certified code enforcement officials and building inspectors to perform rapid evaluation safety assessments of at risk structures. AIANYS and the Department of State are training more professionals to provide this vital support. Public safety will be improved with legislative remedies in 2018 to ensure these good samaritans are relieved of personal or professional liability as they bring aid to their fellow citizens in emergency situations.

Five years ago, tens of thousands of New Yorkers began picking up the pieces from the wrath of Superstorm Sandy.

Undoubtedly, we have made progress preparing for the next storm that will strike our region. However, we must honestly recognize that every risk is not accounted for in our current preparations. In an environment made more unpredictable by climate change, true resilience will only be achieved if the next phase of preparation addresses the full range of disastrous weather events we may face.

Illya Azaroff, AIA, is principal at Brooklyn-based +LAB Architect, PLLC and an associate professor at NYCCT (CUNY). He is an architect and educator with over 25 years of experience and a nationally recognized expert in resilient building measures and recovery systems. He is a member of the board of directors of the American Institute of Architects New York State and is the organization’s New York State Disaster Assistance Coordinator.

DON’T BOTHER PLANNING FOR THE NEXT SANDY. SHE ISN’T COMING.

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DESIGNING FOR MULTI-DIMENSIONAL RESILIENCY IN HEALTHCARE

By Richard J. Kahn, AIA, LEED AP

>> Resilient design has become a critical topic for the design community and essentially every organization that owns and operates real estate. Just months removed from a remarkably active and devastating 2017 Atlantic hurricane season that brought widespread destruction to Houston (Hurricane Harvey), Florida (Hurricane Irma) and Puerto Rico (Hurricane Maria), to name a few, more and more people are focused on how we can create buildings to withstand these powerful storms.

That’s not to say designing for resiliency is just about equipping buildings to remain functional during major hurricanes. Per the Resilient Design Institute, “resilience is the capacity to adapt to changing conditions and to maintain or regain functionality and vitality in the face of stress or disturbance. It is the capacity to bounce back after a disturbance or interruption.” Hospitals need to be prepared to withstand tornadoes, heavy snowstorms, flooding, drought, power outages and even the test of time based on their geographic location. In New York State, we are susceptible to many of these weather occurrences and designers have a responsibility to focus on helping design our built environment to be as resilient as possible.

The design community often talks of creating buildings that can thrive for 50-100 years, but that’s only achievable if we design them to accommodate the changes in technology and practice that will absolutely occur during their lifetimes.

Using a standardized structural grid provides one solution to the elusive goal of “future proofing” our facilities. A “universal grid” consisting of the optimum set of vertical and horizontal dimensions for a building’s structure can empower almost infinite adaptability - allowing hospital spaces to operate for patient care, research and design, meeting rooms, or more. The universal grid also enables these spaces to evolve from one to the other over time while also enabling efficient configuration of structure, casework, lab equipment, lighting, power, and HVAC. Infusing a “universal grid” approach into the design of our buildings can help them be resilient to change, new technology and more - all helping to extend their valuable lifetime.

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy in 2012, our statewide design community saw the destruction possible from these intense storms. A report from the Department of Health and Human Services indicated that 89% of hospitals in the area had “substantial challenges” in the storm, including infrastructure breakdown, power outages, and disputes over resources. These challenges impacted patients, staff, and entire communities.

Designing healthcare’s built environment to withstand the many challenges it will face isn’t as simple as adding a flood wall. Resilient design requires a strategic and multi-dimensional approach. There are several design ideas that can help buildings withstand these challenges: Designing to Withstand the Test of Time While discussion about designing for resiliency often focuses on hurricanes and other storms, time itself is a threat to a building’s endurance.

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>> Photo courtesy of CannonDesign

Designing for Redundancy A dangerous reality that can occur during powerful storms it loss of power. This threat means designing for resiliency must not only consider a hospital’s shape and form, but its energy infrastructure too. Failing to design redundancies into power systems can leave health facilities without power during severe weather events.

According to a recent story published by Quartz, the Houston area saw a lower percentage of hospitals close in the wake of Hurricane Harvey compared to other major storms like Sandy and Katrina. Backup generators helped several hospitals remain 100% operable during the storm including Doctors Regional Hospital in Corpus Christi.

Kimberly Megow, the chief medical officer at Doctors Regional told Quartz their generators started up essentially the moment the initial power went out and that, “hospitals really are the place of last resort for any patients in the community—we always have to be ready, we can’t close.”

Addressing a hospital’s power infrastructure requires a holistic design approach that engages stakeholders, architects, engineers and more to ensure comprehensive solutions are designed, implemented and ready in time of disaster.

Designing Buildings to Meet their Unique Challenges Given the wide variety of challenges healthcare facilities can face (hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding, snow), it’s key for every organization to ensure their buildings are uniquely ready to meet them. After Hurricane Sandy, the Manhattan VA Medical Center was forced to close for months due to storm damage. However, the team has since made several updates to their facility including: • The construction of a permanent floodwall to protect sides of the hospital exposed to flood-level waters; • Renovations to their medical-surgical inpatient services on the 4th and 8th floors and their inpatient behavioral health clinic on the 17th floor; and • The creation of a raised generator building and switchgear room to replace underground fuel tanks and several other infrastructure and system components.

All of these new features uniquely equip the hospital to stay operable and treat patients in the event of another storm.

Other examples from across the country include: • Stanford Hospital leverages base isolation, a technique developed to prevent or minimize damage during earthquakes that can occur in California’s Bay area. The building is placed on 206 base isolators, enormous parallel steel plates with a sort of ball bearing suspension system that help the building essentially move with the earthquake. The building is one of the most seismically safe hospitals in the country, able to

>> Photo courtesy of CannonDesign

continue operations after an 8.0 or “great” earthquake.

• Nantucket Cottage Hospital is uniquely located on the small island of Nantucket, Massachusetts and serves 11,000 permanent residents while balancing a seasonal influx of 50,000 additional visitors. Given the building is truly on an island 30 miles at sea, it leverages several resiliency design features including windows that can withstand winds up to 175 miles per hour and are operable to provide natural ventilation, if needed, system redundancies, rooftop mechanical systems and dedicated sources of electric and water.

• Mount Sinai Medical Center’s new 340,000 sf campus expansion is located right on the coast of Biscayne Bay in Miami and brings needed emergency department and inpatient treatment spaces. Given the building’s coastal location, it is designed to withstand Category 5 hurricane winds and addresses flooding challenges by raising the hospital 3 feet off the ground.

Designing for Recovery While the ultimate goal is to create buildings that can withstand our toughest natural disasters, it’s also important for designers to help health systems design response and recovery plans. Often, a hospital’s ability to function can mean the difference between life or death for certain patients and so it’s critical they have a strategic plan in place to move patients in the event that a storm does cause critical damage.

Designers should be advocates for these plans and help organizations think through every detail and refresh or revise them annually. While nobody ever wants to have to “recover,” it’s key these plans are in place years in advance just in case.

New research indicates that storms may grow even more powerful in the years ahead. This means resilient design is only set to become more important for healthcare organizations in the future. Our design community should become a powerful resource in helping health systems across the country create hospitals and care spaces that can deliver for patients, staff and communities even in the worst of times.

Richard Kahn, AIA, LEED AP is CannonDesign’s New York City office practice leader and a principal in the firm’s healthcare practice.

DESIGNING FOR MULTI-DIMENSIONAL RESILIENCY IN HEALTHCARE

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3.5 Work that requires a special for safety related issues on a construction site. On Administrative Code. A single construction superintendent inspection for underpinning; or Peter Simon JD, CSP is certain projects below 10 stories, a single licensed can be designated on up to 10 active construction projects 3.6 Work that requires a special a safety consultant and superintendent must be designated. The licensed inspection for the protection of sides of concurrently. The construction superintendent must risk manager in NYC and excavations; designate a “competent person” for eachsuperintendent is responsible for visiting assigned site.

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NEW YORK CITY SITE SAFETY PLANS AND SUPERINTENDENT - NEW REQUIREMENTS

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BUILDING HOLISTIC RESILIENCE AFTER DISASTER By: Daniel Horn, Assoc. AIA, SEED

>> As weather forecasters and scientists predicted, 2017 was an abnormally active hurricane season. With this year’s continuous cycle of powerful tropical storms pounding the U.S., Caribbean, and other small nations, the need to understand, proliferate, and build resilience in the wake of these events is becoming ever more imperative.

Climate change is a reality, and we are seeing the negative effects unfold across much of the globe on a continual basis. From heatwaves and droughts, to hurricanes and flooding, climate related disasters are becoming commonplace events for many of the worlds communities. In the U.S. we are seeing climate change related tropical cyclones take a toll on the communities at greatest risk – those that lie along the countries coastlines. In fact, 5 of the 10 most powerful hurricanes and 7 of the 10 warmest years on record have occurred in the past decade. According to the National Hurricane Center (NHC), Hurricane Irma grew to be the strongest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic, wiping out entire islands, many of which are also enduring the effects of Maria. The proliferation of powerful tropical cyclones has already made an historic impact on the world’s coastal communities this year.

>> Photo courtesy of ORLI+

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This is not a coincidence as we know that scientific studies point to a connection between warmer oceans and more powerful tropical cyclones. The overwhelming majority of climate scientists around the world have been warning us for years to prepare for more frequent and more powerful storms. Hurricanes grab their strength and intensity from warm waters, and warming oceans can be attributed to a warmer atmosphere caused by increased carbon emissions. Stronger storms fueled by warmer ocean waters bring with them higher storm surge and higher wind speeds which results in more catastrophic damage to the communities that they impact.

Each tragedy is defined both by the specific characteristics of the storm and the typologies of man-made developments coupled with the local ecological conditions they overlap. Each storm is drastically different than the previous, and it is extremely difficult to compare one storm event to another. Additionally, each locale where storms hit is developed in different ways and sits within unique natural landscape contexts. This development often disregards natural systems thus negatively affecting the communities that call these places home. In Harvey, we saw intense rainfall that reached record-breaking levels, over 50 inches in some areas. The cities decision to develop in sporadic

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and low-lying areas along the various bayous and rivers increased the risk for the communities that now live there.

With Irma and Maria, we’ve seen intense winds (at times above 150 mph) that cause major damage to buildings and natural ecosystems. Buildings that did not conform to current code were susceptible to the most damage.

Many developing nations do not have an enforceable building code to follow, and communities do not have the resources to comply with more stringent construction standards.

During Superstorm Sandy, the tri-state area saw unprecedented storm surge which was the main destructive force. Most of the low-income communities have historically been pushed to the water’s edge where low-lying areas are less desirable for higher end developments. Sustained residential development in these coastal areas shows that people are unwilling and/ or unable to pick up and move away from these at-risk locations with ease. In Katrina, we saw storm surge and severe infrastructure failures which devastated inland communities around the entire city.

However, we often see the communities that are most affected and at risk also prove to have the greatest capacity for social resilience. These tight-knit communities come

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together for one another, and it drastically improves their recovery efforts as they move forward after an event. This is important to recognize and capitalize on, especially in an age where government programs and strategies for recovery and improvement fall short, leaving many communities and homeowners behind due to complex processes, red tape, and diminished funding for local participation and recovery.

We also see that because each community is tight-knit, the communication they share among themselves vastly improves their immediate recovery. Local grassroots groups pop up everywhere along the affected areas to give back, and the most active voices in the community become leaders of those groups. They donate food, water, supplies, and most importantly, their time.

In late 2012, Operation Resilient Long Island (ORLI) formed in response to Superstorm Sandy as a grassroots group of architecture and design students that wanted to effect change in a positive way. We knew that local communities had never seen this type of damage, and thus, first responded by creating informational pamphlets that broke down the confusing FEMA rebuilding and insurance information into a digestible format. We used our unique skills being architecturally trained as a way to visually and >> continued on next page

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graphically represent how rebuilding was going to take place. Today, we are ORLI+ (Operation Resilient Living & Innovation), a rebranded version of ORLI that is working towards holistic resilience in communities.

disturbances and disasters, both natural and manmade, is paramount in catalyzing change and action. With these specific methodologies, we can help communities plan and rebuild for the uncertain future.

Moving forward after a disaster, it is important to foster the development of holistic resilience in communities that are vulnerable to environmental risk and disruption. As we consider the best options for capitalizing on existing assets to catalyze further community resilience, several critical strategies emerge as guiding principles: research, engagement, empowerment, and design. Researching and disseminating strategies for innovative approaches to achieve resilience in communities is crucial for creating a global network of grounded solutions. Reimagining the role of design professionals and processes through engagement facilitates a more inclusive, integrated, and resilient dialogue between designers and the public.

Empowering communities to invest in their futures to pursue initiatives and projects based on their local situations and needs produces a consistent and sustained forward momentum towards resilient visions and plans.

Designing solutions for communities facing future

These same efforts need to be replicated in the affected areas in Houston, Florida, and throughout the Caribbean.

Local communities must be given the proper tools and information so they can evaluate, digest and disseminate for themselves, therefore empowering their long term holistic resilience in partnership with critical professional and technical experts. ORLI+’s intention will be to maintain close contact with our friends in these affected areas. We are beginning to share our lessons learned after Sandy and will distribute these to our colleagues so that they can analyze and apply local vernacular and tailor the information to their specific neighborhoods. The most critical need of communities after a disaster is support, and ORLI+ is committed to offering ours in any way we can to help communities bounce back to pre-storm function and empower them to spring forward into a more holistic and sustained resilience for the future.

>> Photo courtesy of ORLI+

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ALLIED PARTNERSHIP

Become an Allied Partner of AIANYS as an Individual or Corporate Partner. Connect to issues and trends at the forefront of the architectural industry as we plan for tomorrow.

NEW YORK 8,851 AIA MEMBERS Membership as of November 29, 2017

Allied Partnership is open to those not otherwise eligible for an AIA membership but are involved in fields closely related to the architectural profession. Our Allied Partners include engineers, contractors, planners, sculptors, artists, and many more.

VISIT: WWW.AIANYS.ORG/ALLIED-PARTNERSHIP-PROGRAM/FOR MORE INFORMATION

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MERGING OBSERVATION AND COMMON SENSE FOR RESILIENT DESIGN Jeffery Thomas Smith, AIA, NCARB

>> The Southern Tier of New York, where I live and practice, has been affected by several extreme weather events over the past decade. Severe flooding occurred in 2005, 2006, and again in 2011. During Tropical Storm Lee In 2011, 20,000 residents were evacuated when Tropical Storm Lee dumped 6 inches of rain over a 24-hour period sending rivers 17 feet above flood stage. I have spent time in the affected communities speaking with a handful of residents who were impacted by flooding and the challenges that they faced. Three days after Tropical Storm Lee, I strapped on my backpack and headed into the Village of Owego to hand out gloves, masks, water, and share flyers and my knowledge of helping to recover historic buildings from flood damage.

housing were targeted to enhance a major gateway into the City of Binghamton.

In the GOSR project application, we focused on the existing buildings inherent resiliency with a gut rehab of 11 distinct structures constructed in the early part of the last century. It made sense to take advantage of construction details integral within the buildings as they exist, original details designed by their architects or constructed by their craftsman. Then we could move forward with combining the inbuilt details with some modern techniques and systems, and some old fashioned common sense. >> continued on next page

Currently, my firm is working on elevating our third and fourth structures. We just completed the elevation of an 1850’s Carpenter Gothic through a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program, and in 2015 we helped elevate a 1980’s split level ranch under the NY Rising program. With our area’s history of severe weather, there are many features of our existing building stock that can be used to make sure they will serve their renewed purpose well in to the future.

It was not until Hurricane Sandy in 2012 that New York State was prodded to focus intently on storm damage rebuilding efforts beyond just the downstate region. Various State departments fixedly considered upstate recovery programs and options for affected areas and properties. It is my understanding that federal disaster funds also came with economic requirements that forced the dollars to be spread around the State.

In 2014, after only 20 days of review, an office project that was previously reviewed and not funded, was one of the first two upstate projects awarded Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery funds from the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery (GOSR). Resiliency and efficiency were the goals of the Binghamton Gateway Homes project. Thirty-seven units of affordable

>> Photo courtesy of Chianis + Anderson

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>> Photos courtesy of Chianis + Anderson

Existing Building Advantages The Binghamton Gateway Homes are perched on durable stone foundations two and one-half feet and higher above the surrounding grade. This keeps wood components well away from ground moisture and provides a sturdy base with which to rely upon for the renovation of the upper floors.

The cellars were devoid of most mechanical or electrical equipment. We decided to keep them empty. Protection from moisture includes shedding water off the steep roofs and away from the buildings with large overhangs. Existing windows provide plenty of natural lighting and ventilation.

The windows are also shaded by the roofs as seasonally necessary. To top this all off, there were many architectural details that had been hidden or abandoned in place. It was a treasure trove of resilient, efficient, and sturdy elements to start to work with.

Modernization In the renovation design we utilized simple techniques and readily available technology. We relocated any systems and services to the first floors. We patched and repaired the stone. A rigorous air sealing campaign was implemented along with installing cellulose insulation and continuous rigid insulation board. We used just enough to fill the cavities of the existing walls (four inches) and the floor (eight inches) and loaded up the attics with more than twelve inches while wrapping the entire exterior with the foam. A simple control switch was also installed for a variable speed exhaust fan in the bathrooms to aid in ventilating the building, a very simple but important system.

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Potable and hydronic hot water is provided by one wall hung tankless heater per unit. Water conservation is handled with low flow plumbing fixtures including low flow toilets. The toilets are non-specialty, off the shelf thrones that use .8 gallons per flush. They have been proven amazingly efficient and reliable.

Common Sense What else is there to consider? The buildings are somewhat protected from high water events. What can we, as architects, simply observe or understand that can add additional robustness to the building? For example, using a gas fired range. These unit’s top burners can still function when the power fails.

Wind, another result of severe storms, exposes structures to massive forces. When looking at the peak of an attic, you want to see wind bracing at the ridge, and ties in the middle of the roof rafters. If you are replacing siding, be sure to install nail on hurricane ties for all structural roof elements. Conform existing nailing patterns to current code requirements. Think long and hard about the wall components and consider adding ventilation behind the siding; a rain screen. Always install gutters and downspouts.

Before you close-up the building, consider applying a low toxicity, borate based pretreatment for insects, fungi and algae, particularly on any major supporting elements in the cellar or elements in contact with masonry or stone.

Certainly, there are many more items that can be listed and that may be applicable to your project.

After construction, the buildings were required to be evaluated based on a point ratings system as well as the

Home Energy Rating System (HERS) Index. The results tabulated a HERS Index average of 56 indicating buildings that perform 40% or better than their peers. All 11 buildings were also deemed to meet or exceed Energy Star version 3.1.

Resiliency is about mitigating any number of events that can adversely impact our buildings. The benefits include less stress on first responders, less strain on insurance, fewer tax dollars for rebuilding and repairs and reduced strain on the environment.  

Checklists and inspections only certify that a small portion of the project meets some set standard. Real world performance will be what confirms a successful transformation of 11 dilapidated, abandoned buildings with substandard living conditions into a built environment with durability and some good common sense.

Jeffery Smith, AIA, NCARB, received a Bachelor of Architecture from New York Institute of Technology, Old Westbury, NY. Jeffery maintains registration with the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards and upholds professional architectural registrations in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New Hampshire, Virginia, South Carolina and Florida. He is a member of many professional affiliations including the American Institute of Architects (AIA), National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB), and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. In 2010, Jeffery was honored by the AIA National Board of Directors as a Citizen Architect for his commitment to the community and to the architecture profession. His passion is preservation.

Resiliency is not just designing a building that can withstand hostile weather events, but building in additional characteristics that keep the building intact, services in operation, efficiency and provides safety and security.

>> Photos courtesy of Chianis + Anderson

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