Description: RKTB's conceptual design for The Vanguard contains a total of 202 affordable apartments, a recreational room for residents, and spaces for the Van Dyke community at large. The 197,853 gross-square-foot building rises between seven and eleven floors, with setbacks that minimize the perceived height of the building while maximizing the light and air separation between it and the flanking high-rise blocks. A gently undulating facade further breaks down the proportions of the expanse along Dumont Avenue. The design optimizes the exterior envelope as a first step to creating a high performance building. Sustainable elements include a "green" roof on the lower terrace that will be irrigated by captured rainwater, highly insulated walls and roofs with minimal air infiltration, high performance operable windows and doors, high efficiency incremental boilers, through wall air conditioning with highly insulated sealed panels, and low flow plumbing.
