The Green Rooftop at the Greenway Building

Riders of the Hiawatha light rail may notice an interesting roof as they head North from the Lake Street/midtown station. The Green Institute’s Phillips Eco-Enterprise Center (PEEC), located at 2801 21st Avenue South in Minneapolis completed a 4000 square foot green rooftop in the spring of 2004.

The green rooftop is one of three projects installed on the PEEC roof. The Green Institute received a grant from the Metropolitan Council to complete the construction of the green rooftop. Over 120 different volunteers helped out at six installation events.

Some areas of the rooftop feature two inches of growing medium and are planted with European sedum varieties as well as arctic poppies. Other areas of the rooftop feature six inches of growing medium and are planted with grasses and flowers that are native to Minnesota river bluff prairies.

The PEEC green rooftop has multiple functions besides being a beautiful garden it. It increases the life expectancy of the roof membrane from 15-20 years to 35-50 years, minimizing construction waste and cost for replacement roofs for building owners. It also decreases heating and cooling costs (The City of Chicago says their 10,000 sq ft green rooftop saves them $10,000/yr in energy costs). The green roof manages up to six inches of storm water through absorption and filtration (Minneapolis is discussing charging property owners for impervious surfaces), and increases urban green space which addresses air and water quality concerns as well as scenarios of ‘urban heat islands.’

Note: The Green Institute is no longer at this address, and the name of the building has been changed from the Philips Eco-Enterprise Center to the Greenway Building.

For more information contact Wellington Management at 651-292-9844.