Neumann Monson Architects earned a pair of awards last month from the American Institutes of Architects (AIA) for its work on the Unitarian Universalist Society in Coralville and for the design of Market One, an adaptive reuse of a historic Des Moines building.
The company received its third Impact award from AIA Iowa – the highest state-wide award for designs that directly benefit social, humanitarian, community or environmental causes – for the design of the Unitarian Universalist Society facility in Coralville, an ambitious yet value-oriented “Net Positive Energy” building.
The new facility allows the congregation to grow their mission of social and environmental justice, faith, and inclusivity while using their net-positive facility as a teaching and outreach tool.
“The Unitarian congregants are as passionate about their dedication to sustainability and equity as we are,” Project Architect Matt Krieger said in a release. “It was so exciting to partner with them to build the ‘greenest church in Iowa.’”
Jeffrey Ford, a New Facility Committee member, agreed. “We strove to have the greenest building we could afford. The staff of Neumann Monson exceeded our vision creating a building that is a symbol of our aspirations to live sustainability and heal the earth.”
Neumann Monson also earned an AIA COTE Top Ten award from the AIA – the industry’s highest award for sustainable design excellence – for the design of Des Moines’ Market One.
“Market One survived decades of urban decay to be transformed into the vibrant anchor of a redeveloping neighborhood,” said partner Channing Swanson. “The former threshing machine factory now marries the seemingly contradictory efforts of energy efficiency and modern comfort systems with the utilization of state and federal tax credits for historic preservation to become commercial office space.”
As the industry works to make buildings carbon neutral by 2030, the COTE Awards highlight projects that exemplify the integration of design and performance by meeting rigorous criteria for social, economic, and ecological value. Renewable energy supports Market One’s preservation following stringent guidelines used by the National Parks Service.
“Market One shows clients and design professionals how to drive positive change – that you can preserve historic construction and get the building to perform well,” said Lyndley Kent, architect and shareholder at Neumann Monson Architects. “Market One inspired our community to rethink the potential of well-located neglected structures. Our client lives their mission to be a benevolent corporation through this building.”
Neumann Monson Architects’ design adaptively reuses a factory for commercial space. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and with renovation completed in 2014, Market One relies on geothermal and solar energy serving an array of efficient design decisions to achieve a 75 percent reduction in energy use in the 54,000 square foot office building. Retaining or repurposing existing materials diverted over 96 percent of potential waste.
