SierraScape June - July 2008
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by Jan Niehaus
Contributing Member
photos courtesy of Timothy Montgomery, TMA Architects LLC

Skylights and multiple windows deliver natural light to the first floor. The glass insert in the floor passes light into the basement.

The "greenest" building in the City of St. Louis-the William A. Kerr Foundation headquarters-will host the Eastern Missouri Group's (EMG) first-ever fund-raising dinner on Saturday, September 6. In August 2007, the building earned the U.S. Green Building Council's highest level of LEED certification: Platinum, which requires at least 52 out of a total 69 possible points. It is the only Platinum LEED-certified building in the City of St. Louis. It is the second Platinum project in the St. Louis region: with 58 LEED points, it followed Alberici's headquarters, which was certified in 2004 with 60 LEED points.

We lucky Sierra Club EMGers get to wine, dine, dance, and celebrate inside this fabulous building the first Saturday in September! And if we're really lucky, we may get personal tours by John Sweet, the Foundation's affable, welcoming co-trustee, and/or Timothy Montgomery, principal architect for the project and principal of St. Louis-based TMA Architects.

The City's Only Platinum LEED-Certified Building

The first thing you'll notice about the William A. Kerr Foundation building at 21 O'Fallon Street is its brownfield location (for which it earned LEED points) several blocks north of the Arch. Right now, it's a rather desolate region, across from the abandoned Laclede Power Station and one block off the Riverfront Trail, but developers have snatched up surrounding parcels and the area should be jumpin' in five years.

The next thing you'll probably notice is the 33-foot wind turbine, which, together with the roof-mounted solar panels, is designed to meet 20% of the building's energy requirements. Circling the building exterior, you'll see an oversized barrel at the end of a downspout, which captures rainwater for the meandering rain garden, which includes Missouri-native plants.

Additional "green" features include a roof garden planted with hardy sedum, sky lights, light tubes, lots of windows and natural light, motion sensors, bamboo and cork flooring, low-VOC paint, inflatable HVAC ductwork, plus original building materials.

Much of the "green" is invisible. For example, you can't tell by looking that the stair treads and railings were milled from oak timbers that once supported the first floor. You also can't tell that the first floor was raised to create a full-height basement, which increased the building's functional space without expanding its footprint.

Without a doubt, the building is plain-no ceremonious entry or distinctive architectural details outside, no archways or decorative coves inside. The building has lived a rich and varied life-as a bath house, meat processing plant, auto body shop, and book warehouse. Today it contains humble offices and no-frills meeting space.

The humble exterior belies the wealth of "green" innovations inside.

Lucky EMG

The Sierra Club Eastern Missouri Group joins a long list of local, not-for-profit organizations that have gathered in the facility: Missouri Coalition for the Environment, Confluence Greenways, KDHX-FM, USGBC-STL, to name a few. The Foundation is committed to issues related to the environment, education, accessibility, and health.

We're fortunate to have access to this spectacular property and excited about the event that the EMG Fundraising Committee is planning for early September. In addition to this stellar example of "adaptive reuse" architecture, we'll also have great food and drink, live music by local musicians, a silent auction with items that every Sierran would love to own, and some of the best companionship and conversation you'll find anywhere.

This is one fund-raising dinner you won't want to miss. Mark your calendar!