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Silva Cells Create Longevity for Housing, Apartment, and Residential Projects

Silva Cells create large amounts of soil volume for tree roots to grow and mature, while providing stormwater management, in paved environments. Typical urban infrastructure such as sidewalks, pavement, and utilities have always been barriers to tree roots and thereby canopy growth. Silva Cell eliminates these barriers to growth while also managing and filtering stormwater pollutants and mitigating effects of climate change.

DeepRoot knows this is especially important for trees that are part of existing or new housing projects. Whether the housing project is a brand-new apartment complex in New York or Northern California, a community housing project in Texas or Toronto or fellowship housing in D.C, Silva Cells perform every time. When we help create canopies in areas that were void of greenery, we’re helping to create equity. DeepRoot believes Silva Cells should be installed wherever trees are planned in all parts of our urban ecosystems, making for a more equitable neighborhood and city. Trees that guard our homes, provide safety, and create beautiful areas to relax in. The cooling effect they provide lowers our electric bills in the sweltering summer months. A large tree increases property value.  Trees create a sense of place and make our homes feel whole, and we need to encourage all efforts to grow our urban canopies to their full potential. The following are a selection of a few of the recent housing projects we are proud to have been a part of.

DeepRoot Housing Projects:

Riverbank West Apartments | Manhattan, New York


Apartment

The luxury, Riverbank West Apartments are just off the Hudson River waterfront and minutes away from Chelsea and Midtown. The enormous private courtyard, protected from the street by trees and laced with paths and plantings, creates a transition for Riverbank residents from the density and din of the city to the elegantly restored Riverbank homes. 

Quick facts:
600 1X Silva Cells
36 trees
7,884ft3 (223m³) of total soil volume
Completed in 2018
HM White Site Architects

North River Apartments | Petaluma, California

 Apartment


The 3.92-acre redevelopment project is at Petaluma Blvd North and Oak Street. In 2022 there will be two brand new apartment buildings ranging between three to five stories in height with 184 units, and 42 street trees. The project includes the extension of Oak Street and Water Street North, of which both will be lined with trees, and are currently being lined with Silva Cells.
Quick facts:
420 2X
42 trees
10, 328ft3 (292m³) of total soil volume
Video link
Ongoing, completion due in 2022
Civil Design Consultants

Villas at Vanston Park | Mesquite, Texas

Subsidized Housing

Villas at Vanston Park incorporated 25 trees into the housing project in 2017. The Everclean Elm trees line the dwelling units on all blocks off Oates and Gus Thomasson Rd in Mesquite (Dallas), Texas.
Quick facts:
192 3X Silva Cells
6,578 ft
3 (186m³) of total soil volume
25 trees line the community units
Completed in 2016. Photograph from 2019.
CEI Engineering

Alexandra Park | Toronto, Ontario

Subsidized Housing

This 3 phase project spans 2 city blocks in Toronto. This project was outlined in our Three C’s (Compromise, Collaboration, and Creativity) series. Details here: case study.
Quick facts:
100 2X Silva Cells
70m³ ( 2,459ft3) of total soil volume
22 trees located in front of dwelling units.
Completed in 2017. Photograph from 2019.
Janet Rosenberg & Studio

 Regent Park Housing | Toronto, Ontario

Subsidized Housing

Regent Park Housing is going through a major transformation. 54 trees and counting are part of a 5-year plan that surrounds 10+ city blocks in Regent Park. Regent Park is going through a greening transformation and revitalization. The region in Toronto has seen an uptick in development and is part of Toronto Community Housing. The development has been designed with a tree canopy and longevity in mind for low-income housing.
Quick facts:
936 3X, 421X Silva Cells
37,599ft3 (1,065m³) of total soil volume
54 trees located in front of dwelling units.
Started in 2017, ongoing.
Brook McIlroy and NAK Design Strategies

 Dumbarton Oaks Housing | Washington D.C.

Fellowship/Student Housing

Dumbarton Oaks is a Harvard University research institute, library, museum, and garden located in Washington, DC. The revamp of the housing was covered in Architect Magazine. They note, “Dumbarton Oaks Fellowship House adaptively reuses a commercial building in Georgetown Washington, DC into 25 dwelling units for Fellow”. This LEED Gold certified project added 7 trees within its parking lot. The photograph above is from shortly after it was completed in 2016.
Quick facts:
120 1X Silva Cells
1,577ft3 (45 m³) of total soil volume  per tree:
7 trees located in parking lot, opposite dwelling units.
Planted in 2016. Photograph in 2017.
Nelson Byrd Woltz

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