Gardens in the sky.

CODE
Charlottesville, VA

As the building steps up from the Mall to Water Street in downtown Charlottesville, one can glimpse eight planted rooftop terraces covering a combined vegetated area of 13,785 square feet.

Overview

The rooftop terraces and gardens support over 7,000 perennials and grasses, 100 shrubs, and 75 large trees, many of which are native species.

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Location: Charlottesville, VA

Completion Date: 2021

Size: 15,500 sqft

Services Provided: Construction

Certifications: LEED Platinum

Awards: AIA Honor Award

Green Roof System: American Hydrotech 

Irrigation: Baseline, Hunter, Netafim

Tree Anchor System: Platipus

General Contractor: Hourigan Group

Architect: Wolf Akerman, EskewDumezRipple

Landscape Architect: Gregg Bleam Landscape Architecture

Horticultural Consultant: Patrick Cullina

Irrigation Consultant: Irrigation Consulting, Inc.

What’s in the build?

As the building steps up from the Mall to Water Street in downtown Charlottesville, one can glimpse eight planted rooftop terraces covering a combined vegetated area of 13,785 square feet.
Drip Irrigation
Drip Irrigation
Trees
Trees
Perennials & Grasses
Perennials & Grasses
Tree Anchors
Tree Anchors
Drip Irrigation
As the building steps up from the Mall to Water Street in downtown Charlottesville, one can glimpse eight planted rooftop terraces covering a combined vegetated area of 13,785 square feet.
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Drip Irrigation
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Trees
03 - 06
Perennials & Grasses
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Tree Anchors
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"LRI were professionals, and took care of Hourigan and the project – before, during, and after the installation was complete."
— Ryan Byrd Director, Operations / Partner, Hourigan Group

Our services in action

Making It Feel Easy
Construction x 
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Making It Feel Easy

The Living Roofs construction team tediously sourced the exhaustive list of specified plant material for CODE from over ten separate nurseries stretching across the mid-Atlantic region and included a custom grow order for thousands of one gallon plants. Deliveries for the over 8,000 individual perennials, grasses, shrubs, and trees were painstakingly sequenced to accommodate other trades, crane schedules, and appropriate climate conditions. They were then expeditiously hoisted, distributed, and installed across the building’s courtyard and eight roof terraces. We’re not going to say it was easy, but we made it feel that way.

Learn more about Construction
Design Studio x 
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Learn more about Design Studio
Ensuring Rigorous Plant Establishment
Care & Maintenance x 
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Ensuring Rigorous Plant Establishment

A long term maintenance plan is always recommended for green roofs, but it is absolutely critical to have an experienced team dedicated to ensuring proper plant establishment following installation. At CODE, our Care & Maintenance team carefully supported the establishment of over 8,000 plants (90+ distinct species!) and optimized the performance of the building’s complex recycled water irrigation system for the first year immediately following installation.

Learn more about Care & Maintenance