The AIA Committee on the Environment (COTE) recently announced its 14th annual Top Ten Green Projects. Demonstrating the range of contemporary green design, the 2010 winners include educational facilities, research centers, commercial spaces, and residential projects, all with varying scales and located in diverse geographies and climates.

The jury established high benchmarks for design and performance—achieving LEED Platinum certification alone wasn’t enough. “Design excellence and sustainability are inseparable; you cannot have one without the other,” said Juror Robert Harris, FAIA, of Lake|Flato Architects. “COTE raises the bar and will continue to raise the bar to influence and define the basis of what we consider smart design.”

As is standard with the awards program, there were ten measures applied to candidates: intent and innovation; community; site; bioclimatic design; light and air; water; energy; materials; long life; and feedback. Though AIA COTE Top Ten Green Projects don’t have to be LEED-certified, this year, five of the winners are, with three others pending certification.

The jury was comprised of Peter Busby, Assoc. AIA, Int’l Assoc. AIA, of Busby Perkins & Will; Robert Harris, FAIA, of Lake|Flato Architects; Denis Hayes from the Bullitt Foundation; Lisa Heschong of Heschong Mahone Group; Alison Kwok, AIA, from the University of Oregon; and Elizabeth Ogbu, Assoc. AIA, of Public Architecture.

GreenSource’s editorial partner, BuildingGreen, coordinates the submission process and winner presentation for the Top Ten Green Projects program using the Department of Energy’s High Performance Buildings Database.

Winners of the COTE awards will be recognized at the AIA’s 2010 annual convention in Miami, June 10-12. Read case studies from GreenSource on three of the winners—Manitoba Hydro Place, 355 11th Street, and Kroon Hall—and look for extensive coverage of the winning projects in the July/August issue.

2010 COTE Award Winners

355 11th Street
Aidlin Darling Design
San Francisco, CA

Homer Science & Student Life Center
Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects
Atherton, CA

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST)
HOK
Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Kroon Hall
Hopkins Architects; Centerbrook Architects & Planners
New Haven, Connecticut

Manassas Park Elementary School + Pre-K
VMDO Architects, P.C.
Manassas Park, VA

Manitoba Hydro Place
Smith Carter Architects and Engineers; Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects
Winnipeg, Canada

Omega Center for Sustainable Living (OCSL)
BNIM ARCHITECTS
Rhinebeck, NY

Special No. 9 House
John C. Williams Architects; KieranTimberlake
New Orleans, Louisiana

Twelve West
Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP
Portland, OR

Watsonville Water Resource Center
WRNS Studio LLP
Watsonville, CA