Compatible Passive Design Strategies to Reduce Heat Gain within the Rowhouse

presented by: Alyson Rock, Architectural Designer, Stokes Architecture & Design

This presentation aims to identify effective, affordable, and compatible passive design strategies for rowhouses that reduce heat gain and building emissions. To that end, this study begins by modeling two existing blocks of rowhouses within the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood of Philadelphia for building simulation studies that look at the amount of direct sun, solar radiation, and natural ventilation the rowhouses receive at the whole block and individual building scale. The methodology of this study was designed to analyze local environmental factors—both natural and constructed—that contribute to overheating within the rowhouse in order to create a framework for further adaptation planning that is derived from local climate, site conditions, and building characteristics.

Alyson received her Bachelor of Architecture from Virginia Tech and her Master of Science in Historic Preservation with a concentration in preservation design from the University of Pennsylvania. During her time at Penn, she became increasingly drawn to preservation's role in social justice and sustainability. She currently works on rehabilitation projects in Philadelphia at Stokes Architecture & Design.