Heavily landscaped with green roofs, planting beds, and water features, Butterfly Square was designed to look like an extension of the neighboring park. To keep the development pedestrian-friendly and child-friendly, the architects tucked parking underground and created a pedestrian-only square made up of a series of multi-programmed areas. In addition to recreational space and retail, a portion of the square sinks into an amphitheater performance space that’s shielded from the elements by a sharply angled green roof.
Related: Bercy Chen Studio’s Green-Roofed Edgeland House Transforms a Former Brownfield in Texas
While Butterfly Square’s abundance of green roofs will provide habitat for insects and birds, one of the major goals will be to plant rare hårginsten flowers in a bid to attract the endangered ginst butterflies. The architects have also embedded solar panels throughout the green roofs to mimic the way butterflies obtain energy from the sun through their wings. Large skylights on the rooftops stream in natural daylight into the terraced residential units. Construction will begin in 2016.
+ Weatherhead Architecture
Via WAN
Images via Weatherhead Architecture
