Severn Savings Bank

Location: Annapolis, Maryland

Project: "Green Roof" Design

Description: The Severn Savings Bank project with its "green roof" is the first project of its kind in the City of Annapolis. The tradition of creating a living roof that absorbs and filters storm water through a thin section of planted cover has been seen in Europe, particularly in Germany, for some time but has only recently become an accepted design method in the United States.

Severn Savings Bank’s green roof is composed of four inches of soil medium planted with several different species of sedum. Benefits of implementing this "green room" included reducing the building’s heating and cooling costs by serving as an insulator in the winter and reducing the heat island effect in the summer. A further benefit is that the roof treats and reduces storm water runoff. This, in turn, reduces the amount of pollutants burdening the environment, specifically the Chesapeake Bay. The "green roof" also provides an attractive and useable outdoor roof terrace. The focus is on expressing the environmentally sound roof treatment around the perimeter of the roof to enhance its visibility from the street.