Wampanoag Headquarters

Overview

• Location: Gay Head, MA

• Building type(s): Commercial office, Interpretive Center, Assembly

• New construction
• 8,700 sq. feet (808 sq. meters)
• Project scope: 2-story building
• Other setting
• Completed January 1994

The Wampanoag Tribal Multi-Purpose Building serves as an administrative, educational, and social center for the Wampanoag tribe, which has inhabited Martha’s Vineyard for hundreds of years.

This building, the first built by the tribe in hundreds of years, establishes a precedent for what may become a Wampanoag design style. Rather than imitate their traditional curved building form, which is inappropriate for today’s needs, the Tribe chose a design approach that embodies the traditional Native American belief system of interdependence and respect for nature.

Environmental Aspects

In designing this community structure, the Wampanoag Tribe determined that two priorities should drive the building's design: the structure should be built in harmony with the environment, and it should exact minimum environmental impact over its lifetime.

The building requires very little operating energy, treats all human waste and wastewater as a resource, minimizes site impact, and offers a comfortable and healthy indoor environment. It features environmentally sound technologies including daylighting and passive solar construction, efficient lighting, salvaged and recycled construction materials, and resource-efficient plumbing and water fixtures. All these features are thoroughly integrated thanks to careful and detailed cooperation among members of the design team from the beginning of the design process.

Owner & Occupancy

• Owned and occupied by Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), Corporation, nonprofit

Building Programs

Indoor Spaces:

Office (50%), Medical treatment (15%), Conference (15%), Dining (10%), Lobby/reception (5%), Electrical systems (5%)

Keywords

Integrated team, Simulation, Green specifications, Performance measurement and verification, Operations and maintenance, Efficient fixtures and appliances, Graywater, Wastewater treatment, Massing and orientation, Glazing, Airtightness, Passive solar, HVAC, Lighting control and daylight harvesting, Efficient lighting, Cogeneration, Benign materials, Salvaged materials, Recycled materials, Occupant recycling, Connection to outdoors, Daylighting, Natural ventilation, Ventilation effectiveness, Thermal comfort

Team & Process

The Wampanoag Tribe wanted a community center that would have as little impact on the natural environment as possible over the course of its lifetime, reflecting the tribe's environmental ethic.

In early discussions, the Tribe and the designer identified two major objectives: to build in harmony with the environment and to create an integrated design process.

The building's architect, consultants, and construction superintendent worked in close collaboration from the very beginning of the project. Each professional was responsible for considering the building as a whole system of integrated components. As a result, the site designer had significant influence on the massing of the building and the mechanical systems were carefully coordinated with the building's structure.

The building uses familiar materials and construction methods so that tribal members and local tradespeople are comfortable with its construction, operation, and maintenance.

A construction superintendent was hired as an employee of the tribe to oversee the entire construction process. His early involvement as a member of the design team helped the designers avoid mistakes, and ensured that their intentions were faithfully implemented.

The established team continued to report on occupancy evaluation and remediation during the first year and a half of occupation. The ARC Design Group and the construction superintendent continued their collaboration with the Tribe. A comprehensive maintenance manual was produced and building systems were reviewed and adjusted.

ARC Design Group Architect Chilmark, MA

[](learnmore.cfm?ProjectID=107) [Coldham & Hartman Architects, LLC](learnmore.cfm?ProjectID=107) Architect Amherst, MA [http://www.coldhamandhartman.com](http://www.coldhamandhartman.com)

Marc Rosenbaum Energysmiths Mechanical engineer Meriden, NH

Sanford Evans Sanford Evans Associates Landscape architect Tisbury, MA

John Abrams South Mountain Company Designer West Tisbury, MA [http://www.somoco.com](http://www.somoco.com)

Finance & Cost

An important goal of the Tribe was to use construction expenditures to create growth opportunities for Tribal members' businesses. By retaining a construction superintendent and effectively offering 25 sub-contract packages instead of one general construction contract, the Tribe was able to spend approximately 40% of the budget with Tribal-member owned businesses and 95% of the budget within the local island economy. This project offered Tribal members, such as the electrical contractor, the opportunity to gain experience on larger scale, sophisticated projects, and to do so in a supportive setting.

Cost data in U.S. dollars as of date of completion.

• Total project cost (land excluded): $1,150,000

• Some of the hard costs:

  • construction: $134 per sq foot ($1,440 per sq meter)

Green features added $39,000 to the cost of the building; the added cost is offset, however, by an energy savings $7,600 per year. This translates to a simple payback of about 5 years or an 18% annual return on green investment. In effect, the Wampanoag Tribe has $7,600 per year to spend in the local economy, creating more jobs and a healthier economy.

Land Use & Community

The Tribal Headquarters was designed to bring the tribal members together; it contains office areas, meeting rooms, a library, and display areas. In addition, the construction of the building employed community members and supported local businesses, and the money saved through energy conservation is reinvested in the community.

The building is set into the south side of a hill overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. Although the owners and designers initially assumed the building would be perched at the highest point on the site to take full advantage of the ocean view, the site designer suggested setting the structure into the hill. This siting resulted in a lower profile and less obtrusive presence on the land. The location also maximizes exposure to the sun and minimizes exposure to the fierce weather patterns.

• Responsible Planning

  • Ensure that development fits within a responsible local and regional planning framework

• Properties with Excessive Impacts

  • Avoid hilltop properties

Site Description

This is one of few buildings that convert all human waste and washwater to nutrients. A composting system, located directly below the lower floor's bathrooms, treats human fecal material and urine. Eighty square feet of 36"-deep soil beds in the waiting area and multi-purpose room filter graywater from interior fixtures and appliances (including showers, sinks, dishwashers, and washing machines).

These toilets and greywater systems produce compost and fertilizer, which are collected by a local farmer, and irrigation water, which is used on site.

Water use and pollution are further minimized by highly efficient fixtures.

• Previously undeveloped land

Water Conservation and Use

Water Use - Indoor potable water use: 9,130 gal/yr (34,500 liters/yr)

• Wastewater and Graywater Recycling

  • Design buildings to use treated wastewater for non-potable uses
  • Plumb building to accommodate graywater separation

• Site Planning

  • Site buildings to minimize visual impacts, including from roadways and neighboring buildings

  • Protect and celebrate a site’s uniqueness
  • Site buildings so as to help occupants celebrate the natural beauty

Energy

The Wampanoag Headquarters uses about half the energy of a comparable building on Martha's Vineyard. Fine-tuning the heating and electrical control systems will result in even greater improvement.

The building is elongated on an east-west axis with one story above grade on the north and two stories above grade on the south. 65% of the building's glass is located on the south facade to promote solar gain in the winter, while east- and west-facing glass was minimized to prevent overheating in the summer. The glass used for the south windows also admits more solar radiation than the low-e glazings used for the other three facades, which reduce summertime heat gain while providing good visible-light transmittance.

Interior lightshelves above the south-facing windows reflect sunlight deep into the first-floor work spaces, which have an open floor plan and high ceilings to make maximum use of the natural light. A controller system adjusts the electric lighting in response daylight levels, and occupancy sensors also help to reduce lighting-energy use.

A ventilation system that provides heat recovery from exhaust air provides excellent indoor air quality with little energy cost. A separate heat recovery system uses exhaust air from the composting toilet and bathroom to produce all the building's hot water.

Special attention was paid to airtightness because it increases comfort, reduces heating loads, and helps keep potentially damaging moisture out of the building. Airtight construction was verified with a blower door test which helped identify key leakage areas to be resealed.

Along with air infiltration, the design and construction team paid careful attention to insulation levels. The R-22 walls are 2x6 construction with blown-in blanket fiberglass, which fills wall cavities more completely than traditional batts. The vaulted ceilings are insulated to an R-value of 40.

Only the copier room has mechanical cooling. Elsewhere, cooling is provided by operable windows, which allow users to take advantage of the ocean breezes.

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Materials & Resources

The Wampanoag building makes use of an extensive list of resource-efficient, salvaged, and recycled materials.

Old-growth redwood salvaged from discarded beer and wine vats and old-growth Douglas fir salvaged from dismantled warehouse buildings were used in construction. The carpet is made from recycled plastic bottles and its liner is made from compressed recycled newspapers. Ceramic tiles are made from automobile windshields. Doormats are made from recycled tires. Insulation is made from recycled Styrofoam containers. Carpet and natural linoleum were installed without the use of adhesives, and low toxic paints and finishes were used.

A low-cost, easily operated recycling system handles much of the solid waste produced in the building, including paper, plastics, food waste, toner cartridges, glass, aluminum, and batteries.

• Composting Toilets
• Fabric, Cork, and Burlap Panels

• Natural Linoleum Flooring

• Design for Materials Use Reduction

  • Determine whether varying functions can be accommodated in shared spaces

• Recycling by Occupants

  • Specify recycling receptacles that are accessible to the occupants

  • Design a physical in-house composting system

• Toxic Upstream or Downstream Burdens

  • Use true linoleum flooring

• Post-Consumer Recycled Materials

  • Prefer insulation with high recycled content
  • Specify carpet made with recycled-content face fiber

• Pre-Consumer Recycled Materials

  • Specify floor tiles with recycled content

• Transportation of Materials

  • Prefer materials that are sourced and manufactured within the local area

Indoor Environment

The building was designed for optimal utilization of passive solar benefits. Extensive daylighting makes the building a comfortable space without wasting energy.

No adhesives were used to install the carpeting or linoleum and low-VOC paints and finishes were used throughout the building. An efficient ventilation system provides excellent indoor air quality with minimum energy use penalty.

• Thermal Comfort

  • Use glazing with a low Solar Heat Gain Coefficient

• Visual Comfort and The Building Envelope

  • Orient the floor plan on an east-west axis for best control of daylighting

  • Use large exterior windows and high ceilings to increase daylighting

  • Use skylights and/or clerestories for daylighting
  • Incorporate light shelves on the south facade
  • Choose interior and exterior glazing to maximize daylight transmission

• Ventilation and Filtration Systems

  • Design for optimum cross-ventilation through window placement
  • Provide heat-recovery ventilation

• Reduction of Indoor Pollutants

  • Use only very low or no-VOC paints
  • Avoid adhering carpet directly to concrete floor

Lessons Learned

The design team devised a construction process that did not engage a general contractor, but rather selected a construction superintendent to work as an employee of the Tribe. This created a seamless team of allies - designers, building committee, construction superintendent, subcontractors - who delivered constant care to the construction sufficient to translate design aspirations and intentions into a durable, well-built structure. It also allowed a greater portion of the work to be bid by Tribal businesses.

"A single time clock tells the control system whether the building is in Occupied or Unoccupied mode. In Unoccupied mode, the heating setpoint is set back to a lower temperature. When we went to the building in the middle of the night after the first few months, we discovered that the time clock had been set up backwards, so that the day was set back and the night was set to comfort temperatures. No one ever noticed because they weren't there at night (which is why we went there) and the building held temperature well during the day.

"I think the fixed internal lightshelves in this south-facing building are a much better choice than blinds on the upper daylighting glass, as they require no user intervention."

—Marc Rosenbaum

Learn More

It is possible to visit this project. The Wampanoag Headquarters building is located at 20 Black Brook Road in Gay Head, Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Follow signs off State Road.

• Web sites

  • Success Stories: Wampanoag Tribe Multi-Purpose Building
    Publication: Smart Communities Network
    This web site gives a general description of the project including an outline of energy-efficiency features, environmental features, and vital statistics.

  • Wampanoag Tribal Building
    Publication: Coldham Architects
    The architect's web site provides a good description of the design process, its goals, and how they were met.

• Others

  • Article: A Passive Solar Tribal Headquarters: The Wampanoag Tribe builds in harmony with the environment on Martha's Vineyard by Miller, Burke
    Publication: Buildings for a Sustainable America: Case Studies ISBN: 0-89553-304-9
    This chapter on the Wampanoag Tribal Headquarters gives a good description of its design and construction, and provides specifics about the building's energy savings.

  • Article: Wampanoag Tribal Building on Martha's Vineyard
    Publication: Environmental Building News Vol. 3, No.3 p. 10-12 (May/June 1994)
    This case study provides detailed information about the building's energy saving methods and includes a list of specific green materials used.

*Primary Contact* Coldham & Hartman Architects, LLC Architect 155 Pine Street Amherst, MA  01002 413-645-2618 [http://www.coldhamandhartman.com](http://www.coldhamandhartman.com)