Residences at 1717

Cleveland—The Residences at 1717, a historical restoration and conversion of an East Ohio Building in downtown Cleveland, has earned a LEED Silver rating from the U.S. Green Building Council. The building sat empty since 2009 until Ohio-based developer K&D purchased it in 2012. The mindful renovation, sustainability features and panoramic views of Lake Erie helped the Residences at 1717 lease up completely in only eight months.

Sol design + consulting of Cincinnati provided energy efficiency consulting, performance testing, and LEED green building certification services for the 223-unit, $65 million project designed by Berardi + Partners of Columbus.

The 21-story historic building was built in 1959 at East Ninth Street and Superior Avenue in the former financial district of Cleveland, and is in close proximity to the Cleveland Indians’ Progressive Field, Quicken Loans Arena, shopping venues, and many arts and entertainment venues. The building boasts many hallmarks of green development, including its walkability, the utilization of the existing infrastructure, and its easy access to community services.

The Residences at 1717 brings another sustainability principle—reuse. The reuse of the building’s structure and envelope means it uses less embodied energy than a new development of a similar scale. Furthermore, the apartments received new water source heat pumps served by a new, 95-percent-efficient gas-fired boiler and refurbished cooling tower. The building receives fresh air through an energy recovery ventilator (ERV), which also enhances energy efficiency. One of the biggest challenges in historic renovations, the air sealing of each unit, was successfully implemented as well.

Other green features that led to the building’s LEED Silver sustainability award are high efficiency LED, CFL and other fluorescent lighting; ENERGY STAR refrigerators; ENERGY STAR dishwashers and washing machines; WaterSense® toilets and lavatory faucets; green label carpet; low-VOC paints; recycled-content drywall and extensive building component reclamation.

Image courtesy of Residences at 1717