Designed for LEED qualification, the ‘green’ character of Aqua and Lakeshore East is embodied in numerous ways that merit mention, ranging from its location and master plan to the extraordinary and expansive Aqua outdoor deck.

Guided in no small part by a team of LEED accredited professionals, the list of green features begins with a site development plan that maximizes open space. Aqua provides abundant open space relative to the development footprint. This ranges from the outdoor deck to the award-winning park at the heart of Lakeshore East as well as pedestrian promenades and public stairways.

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An 80,000-square-foot outdoor garden capping a three-story podium at its base provides a naturalistic/pastoral landscape and offers extraordinary amenities for residents and visitors to the 81-story Aqua, the most distinctive new mixed-use high-rise building featuring premier Chicago condos.

Aqua’s outdoor deck presents an unparalleled combination of amenities and topography. Landscaped garden areas cover the majority of the deck, providing visual interest with topography, changes of grade and strongly contrasting plants as well as a ‘green’ dimension by helping retain storm water on site.

While its primary goal is to provide residents with a superb outdoor amenity, Aqua’s green roof is also ecologically friendly. It helps improve environmental conditions for Lakeshore East residents as well as all of Chicago. The plants used for all landscaped areas are native species, helping to conserve existing natural areas to provide habitat and promote biodiversity.

Besides reducing the building’s summer temperature and cooling requirements, the green roof also significantly reduces winter heat loss. The heating/cooling benefits extend beyond Aqua by helping reduce the urban heat-island effect created by the high number of hard and reflective surfaces of most city buildings that re-radiate heat in the atmosphere. And the green roof also contributes to air quality, removing airborne particles that cause greenhouse gas emissions.

Aqua’s eco-friendly character is also reflected in a wide variety of earth-friendly interior choices offered to residents by Magellan partners who practice sustainability and conservation in their manufacturing processes.

These include, to name a few:

• Bamboo flooring is a durable hardwood that is considered a rapidly renewable resource.  This environmentally-friendly material is both a renewable resource and recyclable material.  Aqua’s wood flooring material is produced with 1/5th the amount of hardwood required for equivalent solids.  Put another way, it produces 5 times more flooring with the same amount of virgin wood as solid wood flooring.  And wood floors also create a healthier interior environment as they do not trap allergies and dust, or harbor mold-producing moisture.
• Hanstone Quartz countertops is a  ‘Greenguard’ certified (low emitting) non-porous material inhibits mold, mildew and bacterial growth that are harmful to indoor air quality.
• Faucets and shower heads from HansGrohe, Grohe, Moen, Delta and Toto focus on water conservation. These fixtures reduce ‘gallons per minute’ that use technology in a manner that maintains responsible conservation without hindering the comfort or convenience of the user.
• Food disposals are standard in each Aqua Condominium which is an environmentally responsible alternative to transporting food waste to landfills.  They also help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  And, food waste can be recycled to produce renewable energy and fertilizer. 
  

• In the building process Magellan utilizes low E-Tinted glass in Aqua and other buildings to maintain optimal temperature control in each residence.

• Magellan promotes car-sharing by providing two non-profit I-GO car stations - including one hybrid vehicle - each of which replaces 17 cars on the road to help reduce emissions and congestion.

• Aqua has become site of the Midwest's first electric-vehicle charging station open to the public.  The six-charger station at Aqua will accommodate up to 24 plug-in vehicles, be it two or four wheels, hybrids that run on gas and electricity, extended-range electric vehicles and pure electric vehicles.  In tandem with the charging station Magellan is offering discounted parking fees for electric vehicles in the public garage.
  
  It might also be noted by placing its parking entirely underground, a non-roof Heat Island Effect, Aqua completely eliminates hard surface pavements that contribute to thermal gradient differences between developed and undeveloped land.
  
  Both I-GO & Zip Car are conveniently located in Aqua's garage.  Learn more about car-sharing from our partners:
  http://www.igocars.org/ | http://www.zipcar.com

• Aqua's very location at the west end of Lakeshore East is environmentally friendly through its easy access to public transportation that reduces pollution and land development impacts from automobile use. Aqua is within 1/4 mile of several public transportation bus routes as well as commuter rails and subway stations.

• In the context of this exceptional eco-friendly location, Lakeshore East is literally steps from the lakefront and a myriad of bicycle lanes. Because of this proximity and to encourage biking to work when possible, Magellan has provided safe storage and changing facilities in its Aqua corporate headquarters, adding one more small step in reducing pollution.

• It should be noted that WalkScore.com rates Aqua a "Walkers' Paradise" rating it at 100 percent. Walk to everything from Aqua at Lakeshore East. To see how Aqua rates in walk ability go to: http://www.walkscore.com/.

• And the waste management plan for Aqua construction diverted 84 percent of construction waste from landfills that were sent to be recycled.

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Aqua's garage features the Midwest's first electric car charging stations available to residents and the public. To learn more about this innovative green technology visit our partner's website: http://carbondayautomotive.com/.