Sustainability
Building Models is Serious Business
The Timeless Value of Physical Models in Architectural Design Our industry is constantly evolving. From AI-assisted software to advanced BIM modeling, today’s architects and designers spend more time in front of computer screens than at drafting tables or in workshops. However, no matter how advanced technology becomes, it will never replace the beauty, clarity, and…
Read MorePerch & Hollow Residence Progress
This month we are excited to see the progress of the Perch & Hollow residence, a modern house designed to capture the views to the natural wooded surrounding landscape through a cantilevered living space, wrapped entirely in glazing. The opened motorized windows will enhance this experience by allowing the occupants to have unencumbered access to…
Read MoreWhat a Transit Oriented Community Means for New Haven
Summarizing Recent Developments at Union Station In collaboration with the New Haven Parking Authority, Patriquin Architects has assisted in rezoning Union Station and its surrounding lots into a Transit Oriented Community or TOC, marking a significant shift towards car-free living in New Haven. At a recent meeting, Alders voted unanimously to create this new…
Read MoreMeasuring Progress: Interpreting EUI Findings in our Historic Passive Building Renovation
Accurate modeling and monitoring are essential to success in a Passive House project. Data plays a vital role in validating architectural and engineering decisions, confirming the functionality of systems, and identifying areas for potential improvements. After renovating our iconic King’s Block building in New Haven to passive house standards, we started monitoring the Energy Usage…
Read MoreFrame by Frame: Documenting the Evolution of King’s Block’s Passive House Renovation
In 2020, we embarked on a transformative journey to renovate our historic masonry commercial building, built in 1816, using Passive House principles. The plan to renovate one floor at a time evolved into a whole-building energy retrofit, as the pandemic forced us into a building-wide hiatus. Through collaboration with our contractor and in-house architect teams,…
Read MoreHow We Renovated Our Historic Building With Passive Building Principles
In June 2023, Patriquin Architects’ president, Karin Patriquin, traveled to San Francisco to present at the AIA National Conference on Architecture 2023. Titled “Seize the Opportunity of Historic Passive House Retrofits,” the session covered many aspects of a renovation we completed on a historic building in Fair Haven, Connecticut, that we own and use as…
Read MoreKing’s Block was Selected for an AIA Connecticut Sustainable Architecture Award of Excellence!
We won the AIA Connecticut Sustainable Architecture Award of Excellence! We are thrilled to be receiving this award for our Phius (Passive House Institute US) Certified Historic Preservation Project. Located across from the Quinnipiac River, just out of the flood plain, this Passive House retrofit of an 1816 brick building drastically cuts carbon emissions…
Read More2030 Commitment: Prioritizing the Environment in Our Practice
The built environment is responsible for approximately 40% of the world’s carbon emissions. That’s a sobering statistic—especially for those of us in the AEC (architecture, engineering, and construction) community. Needless to say, we can’t simply halt all design and construction activities. But we certainly aren’t powerless when it comes to the climate crisis. In fact,…
Read MoreDesigning for Little Humans: How to Connect Them to Their World
Daycare centers are places where children can play and learn in safe, supervised settings. But when our firm designs childcare spaces, we have loftier ambitions. Our team knows from experience that we can collaborate with daycare center owners to craft environments that meet kids’ baseline needs but go further to foster meaningful connections to the…
Read MoreEarly Childhood Education: How To Design With Nature in Mind
If you’ve ever seen a child playing in and exploring the great outdoors, it won’t surprise you to learn that those experiences are essential to their physical, mental, and emotional development and wellbeing. That’s not our opinion—it’s a well-established fact. And it aligns with what common sense tells you as you watch a child ponder…
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