What folks in Bluffton, South Carolina, have is a secret, a time capsule of a small Southern coastal village. The first homes were built in the early 1800s by plantation owners who wanted a summer’s respite from the heat on Lowcountry cotton and rice plantations.
Today, you can walk beneath a canopy of live oak trees in the one-square mile section of Old Town, on sidewalks adjoining streets that were laid out more than a century ago. Here, a stone’s throw from Hilton Head, the breezes blow inland off the May River, where some of the best oysters in the world are harvested and then prepared at the May River Grill.
When the time came to renovate the Old Town section, the goals were to come up with a design that was in keeping with the architecture, but at the same time to maintain the water quality in the river and protect the trees. Permeable pavement for the sidewalks – especially in areas surrounding the old-growth trees – was specified to keep tree roots watered and to help cut down on water pollution to the river. A Rumbled® StormPave paver from Pine Hall Brick was chosen.
Paige Camp, who serves on Bluffton’s Historic Preservation Commission, says that the pavers, which are roughed up on purpose during the manufacturing process, looked like they belonged in the town.
“Since the rest of the town is a little bit worn at the edges, we would be comfortable with it,” Camp said with a laugh. “We are becoming such an exclusive little spot, we have little cottages that in the past people thought were not worth much and they are now sacred. Hopefully, we are preserving the look and the feel of this quirky town.”
Karen Jarrett, the transportation project manager for the town, says that the $3 million project was intended to slow down the traffic, increase pedestrian access and improve drainage. Originally, Camp said, the town considered installing a concrete paver, but the historic commission felt strongly that the paver should be both permeable and made of clay.
“We just thought the clay was better and more in keeping with the look and feel and characteristics that we have,” said Camp.
Jarrett said that the townspeople are happy with how the project came out.
“It’s beautiful now that it is in,” said Jarrett. “It looks very nice and we haven’t had any complaints so far. And we have had quite a few compliments.”
2009 was a bumpy year for most businesses, but green products like water-permeable pavers represent a fresh opportunity for manufactures, contractors and installers. Municipal and residential projects involving sustainable construction, LEED certification and environmentally friendly products appear to be on the rise.
Greensboro CBS affiliate WFMY featured the Pine Hall Brick plant as an example of this in April.
From Pine Hall Brick to our friends in the industry: Happy Prosperous 2010!
When planning was under way for the renovation of Old Town, the historic district of Winchester, Virginia, the idea was to both improve and complement what was already there.
So far, two of three streets within the renovation project designs have been completed and the third is scheduled for completion next May. And so far, approximately 9,000 square yards of Pine Hall Brick pavers have been laid in the sidewalks in downtown Winchester.
Winchester is very old – with big historic old buildings. Some of the sidewalks before the project were brick and some weren’t, and some of that brick was over 100 years old. And the pavers tie the ground to the buildings around it in terms of visual appeal.— Perry Eisenach, public services director for the City of Winchester
The project was done in-house as a design-build project, with the goals being to replace aging utilities underneath the streets and then providing a appropriately designed streetscape above.
Winchester has been at downtown redevelopment for awhile. The Old Town Development Board’s Web site says that the efforts began in earnest when the Old Town district was named in 1985 by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development as a Virginia Main Street Community.
The Main Street Approach provides a flexible framework that puts the traditional assets of downtown, such as unique architecture and locally-owned businesses, to work as a catalyst for economic growth and community pride.
The investment in historic preservation with pavers designed for today’s city streets seems to be paying off. Since it began, more than $49 million in private investment has gone into preserving the historic character of downtown Winchester. Nearly 390 net new businesses have opened and over 1,400 new jobs have been created.
Winchester has a history that predates the Revolution, so maintaining the brick facades and the pavers bring back, I think, a setting that is more in keeping with the character of a community that has a history. Winchester is certainly one of those. Rather than plain old blacktop or certain other choices for surfaces, the pavers have certainly been a welcome addition to downtown.—Randy Collins, president and CEO of the Top of Virginia Regional Chamber of Commerce.
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A clay paver walkway is a finishing touch for added curb appeal on a current episode of the popular DIY Network program, “Sweat Equity.” Watch November 4, 15 and 16. See times here.
Should you use clay brick permeable pavers or clay brick conventional pavers?
Yes.
Kings Court hardscape by Alberto and Associates uses both conventional and permeable pavers.
Using both can give you the look and durability that you get with clay brick pavers while adding in a new design element and stormwater control at the same time.
That’s how it was with Kings Court, an 11,000-square foot plaza that anchors one end of the pedestrian-friendly main street in Haddonfield, N.J, just outside Philadelphia. The installation won a Bronze Brick In Architecture Award from the Brick Industry Association.
Click image for enlarged view.
The installation had a not-uncommon problem, the ground in front of the Colonial-era buildings would quickly saturate in rainstorms and cause flooding.
Paul Monson, a project designer for Haddonfield.-based architecture firm Alberto & Associates, said that’s because the ground was effectively sealed against water. In the past, Kings Court was paved with clay brick pavers set in concrete, which meant that when the rains came, the water had nowhere to go.
Monson said that the solution was a combination of RainPave Full Range permeable pavers and Rumbled Full Range conventional pavers.
Monson said the combination of pavers was used as a visual design element, in keeping with the Colonial-era surroundings. The design includes directional herringbone patterns that encourage movement, while paver and stone patterns and borders define areas of rest and activity.
(Clay brick pavers) are less slippery, they’re durable and they can be repaired in small sections. To have sections that essentially look the same but are able to infiltrate the stormwater was a way that (both) could be used in the design.—Paul Monson
Architect’s unplanned experiment demonstrates water-permeable capabilities
Architect Robert Michel Charest tells us that water-permeable clay pavers really do let water permeate.
Before the LEED-Certified project was complete, the job site got a dousing from torrential rains.
Charest is an assistant professor at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, and heads the Urban Studio 02 course that designed My Sisters’ House, a structure that will provide a home for five unwed mothers and their children. [Read more about the project here.]
Before the gutters were installed on the building but after that StormPave pavers were put in, a torrential rainstorm lasting an hour and a half hit the work site.
We had a few of these late afternoon rainfalls that created a lot of flooding. One of them was just incredible, the rain was shedding right off the flat roof and falling on the pathway that follows the back of the building. We monitored it to see what it would do. At no time did we see any water pool above the line of the pavers. Everything was being absorbed magnificently and it is absolutely amazing. This is a very economical way to manage water runoff for residential areas, for strip malls, for arenas. And aesthetically, it is a beautiful product.—Robert Michel Charest.
Considering the relatively small size of the My Sisters’ House project, using pavers enables designers to specify an affordable rainwater management system, given that there isn’t enough land for a bioswale or enough money to invest in a conventional underground system.
The designers of the Luray Train Depot, home of Luray-Page County Chamber of Commerce, renovation in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia set out to repurpose the building into a visitor’s center with two goals in mind: (1) refit a 100-year-old building with materials that would be in keeping with the original and (2) do it in a way that was as environmentally sensitive as possible. FPW Architects and Dink’s Construction teamed up using water-permeable pavers to achieve both goals.
Luray depot BEFORE renovation.
The new Depot and Chamber of Commerce office.
The pavers visually tie the old building with its surroundings and provide a good match with some pavers that have been used on the site since the building was built a century ago.
From an environmental standpoint, the pavers are part of a larger stormwater management system, which carries water away from the building and filters it into the groundwater. The pavers themselves are among the most sustainable building materials available.
Installer, Carroll Keller, owner of Dink’s Construction, Harrisonburg, Virginia, installed the pavers, as well as a stormwater management system for a hardscape that is as beautiful as it is practical. Color contrasting pavers were installed as lines for parking spaces, instead of painting the lines directly on the pavers.
David Puckett, president of FPW Architects, Charlottesville, VA, designed the project. “We needed a permeable paving surface to solve a storm water run-off issue and initially we had been looking at a permeable asphalt system, but were concerned about the long term performance and maintenance,” says Puckett. “The water-permeable pavers provided excellent system performance, ease of maintenance and was much more compatible visually with the historic depot building.
“The ability to ‘inlay’ the parking lot stripes and handicapped access symbol was
‘icing on the cake.’”
Keller says he is getting more requests for water-permable products in landscaping projects.
The project is featured in Total Landscape Care. Read the article here.
Adding a water permeable brick patio is helping a project move from LEED “Silver” to “Gold” in Greensboro, North Carolina. University of North Carolina Greensboro architecture students are developing the new facility for My Sisters’ House, a home for unwed teenage mothers. Details here.
Pine Hall Brick supplied StormPave™ water permeable clay pavers and installation help to the charity construction project. Watch the video from WFMY-TV.
Variety is key. Pine Hall Brick’s pavers were chosen by the designers of three very different winners in the annual Brick In Architecture design award competition, which is sponsored by the Brick Industry Association.
The three projects are the Pearl Brewery renovation in San Antonio, Texas, which won a Best In Class; the Cliffs Cottage green home project at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina, which won a Silver award; and Kings Court, a downtown Colonial-era streetscape in Haddonfield, New Jersey, which won a Bronze.
Kings Court is an 11,000 square-foot plaza that anchors one end of the pedestrian-friendly main street of Haddonfield, New Jersey, which attracts visitors from throughout the region to its Colonial-era buildings. Today, residents and visitors to Kings Court are enjoying a number of recent upgrades and repairs, thanks to a public/private cooperative renovation of the plaza.
Designers of Kings Court chose clay brick pavers (traditional and permeable) for both aesthetic and functional reasons. The natural appearance of Rumbled® clay brick pavers are in keeping with the Colonial-era surroundings, while the Rumbled® permeable pavers help reduce stormwater run-off. The design itself even adds to the visitors’ experience, with directional herringbone patterns that encourage movement toward the plaza, while paver and stone patterns and borders define areas of rest and activity.
Cliffs Cottage is a 3,400-square-foot single family residence that was built as an idea house on the campus of Furman University by Southern Living magazine, with the intent that it be green in all respects, by using green technology in all of its mechanical systems and building materials.
That commitment to environmentally sound design included a permeable clay brick paver paving system in pedestrian walks and terraces close to the house.
The permeable pavers, a recent addition to Pine Hall Brick’s product line, provides architects with a way to reduce ‘first flush’ pollutants, such as fertilizers, motor oil and antifreeze, from being washed across a paved surface and ultimately ending up in storm drains, rivers and lakes. Instead, rainwater soaks into the groundwater, where it is naturally filtered.
A custom blend of brick pavers was developed to harmonize with the colors of the existing buildings and to recall pavers that graced the streets of San Antonio during the early years of the brewery’s establishment – and to add visual unity throughout the site. Extensive use of clay brick pavers with rich rustic texturing complements the original brick building facades.
Pine Hall Brick offers a DIY solution to add outdoor living space with genuine clay pavers in the popular DIY Network program “Sweat Equity.” Watch it in June and July, 2009.
Lann and Christian Briel have lived in their 1950s home for 3 years with kids, Ava, 3 and Jonah 6. They bought their home for its “move in” condition and find it very charming but with their growing family, it’s starting to feel a little close. So, they’d like to add a little more “living space” outside…
READ MORE AND GET AIR DATES HERE.
