Principal Kevin Deabler attended this year's meeting of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture's conference in Vancouver to discuss RODE's partnership with a Northeastern University research team led by Michelle Laboy.

The research team is sharing preliminary findings studying RODE's work at Chelsea Point, a large-scale industrial facility currently under construction in Chelsea, MA. The pilot site is funded by the 2022 Latrobe Prize of the AIA College of Fellows.

Chelsea Point - RODE

Researchers are collaborating with the City of Chelsea to test how sensor data and models can measure health hazards and the before / after effects of green infrastructure in architectural developments, and how to use those findings to support design.

Chelsea Point is intended to cater to large-scale distribution and logistics tenants, eager for locations with good access to urban centers and transit hubs. The project abuts a dense urban residential neighborhood, and incorporates a variety of green infrastructure improvements and interventions to modernize the neighborhood's industrial heritage:

• the design arranges the industrial program to leverage site topography and existing traffic patterns, minimizing the impact of the new use on the residential neighborhood
• the building far exceeds the required setbacks where it faces the residential neighborhoods, allowing for generous landscaped streetscapes with native plantings, shade trees, and site furnishings.
• new shade trees visually screen the loading docks from residential areas, and reduce the heat island effect
• the development significantly reduces impervious cover, with new native landscaping that requires no irrigation, and an improved stormwater management approach
• the finished floor is elevated to provide 2' of freeboard to address potential coastal flooding

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