The design team recognized that to meet 2050 emission targets, 75% of the existing buildings – estimated at 54 billion sf – needed to be renovated and reinvented. The relocation presented an opportunity to consider scalable solutions to this challenge while contributing to resilient communities that connect people through design excellence.

Located in Midtown Memphis, the project demonstrates the “how” by devising three sub-projects: repurpose a 1957 building of 7,444 sf into a progressive, environmentally responsible office (663 South Cooper) by becoming carbon neutral; repurpose the adjacent 1957 building of 3,400 sf into a progressive, environmentally responsible office that would demonstrate conventional baseline standards for analytical performance comparison; and provide an economically viable model for reinventing similarly aged buildings into a Carbon Neutral Corridor that connects people, embraces design excellence, and combats climate change by reinventing existing embodied carbon. Resiliency was also critical, mitigating heightened risks for seismic activity, severe weather, a hot-humid climate, and its location above the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer, the primary source for freshwater and 90% of the region’s agricultural pumped irrigation. The project remains active as a research site, generating data that is shared and applied across project scales and typologies encouraging an actionable, national dialogue among public and practice-based communities.

Net-zero strategies provided more than $9,600 in annual energy savings year one; forecasts a ROI in 9.7 years, and has a net measured EUI of -1.3. Outdoor spaces include permeable ground area for the site, new tree canopies, a geothermal field, and an infiltration field to improve stormwater management. To protect the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer, the design prioritized water management on the site filtering rain runoff from both site and roof areas through a multi-layered infiltration system to reduce runoff speed and remove pollutants from stormwater before it is introduced to the municipal stormwater system including low impact design bioswales. Site orientation was analyzed to inform annual sun exposure on walls, glazing, and roofing relating to insulation, solar heat gain and UV exposure. Canopies provide shading of large windows, bird collision deterrent, and solar insulation in winter for daylighting and passive heating. Exterior site lighting is controlled by a daylight sensor and is dark sky compliant. Additionally, the project includes a 50kW photovoltaic array with ability to source power off grid; geothermal heat pump HVAC system and solar water heating to eliminate fossil fuels from building systems.