First of all, you probably know by now that Roofscapes has changed its name to Roofmeadow, right?  Headed up by president and founder Charlie Miller, P.E. – one of our favorite people, and one of my very earliest mentors – Roofmeadow has been one of the trailblazers in our industry starting in the 1990’s and has provided much inspiration to many of us.

They’ve started a new blog, and you’ve got to check out their post about “Philly’s First Bus Shelter Green Roof.”   We first alerted you about it from a series of articles posted in NewsLinks:  Philadelphia Unrolls A “˜Green’ Roof On A SEPTA Bus Shelter, and Green roofs: That bus stop shelter is only the beginning.

As part of its Philadelphia’s Green City, Clean Waters plan, the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) has commissioned Roofmeadow to create a deployable prefab bus shelter green roof kit.  With much fanfare, the first small but highly visible 60 sf prototype was installed at a bus shelter across the street from City Hall on June 15, 2011.

In fact, Mayor Michael Nutter, middle, launched the installation of the series and the event was very well publicized and attended.

“The bus shelter project will benefit the city by increasing Philadelphians’ familiarity with a new type of city greening.” ~ Charlie Miller, P.E.

Charlie’s son, Ari, designed the installation so it could be replicated as a “kit” for other bus stop roofs in the city.  Roofmeadow also has committed to maintaining the roof for its first two years.  Now it will receive regular watering, but after the first growing season the greenroof will not need to be watered.

In the photos below, you see Roofmeadow’s crew of Ari and Lauren on June 14 preparing to remove the existing bus shelter’s polycarbon”‹ate top and below it, the final green result!

“Much like a scaled down version of Roofmeadow’s 1.2 acre green roof on the PECO building, the bus shelter green roof was constructed using pre-grown mats. The mats are made up of drought tolerant succulents (primarily Sedum species) and allow for an instant cover of vegetation. You may also notice flowering Dianthus (also known as Sweet William or Wild carnation) and Portulaca poking through at two of the four corners where the growing media increases to 6.00 inches.” ~ Roofmeadow Blog

Signage will direct people to the Philadelphia Water Department’s Office of Watersheds “Green Roof Bus Shelter”  website with more information about things residents can do.

“We basically see this project as an opportunity to inspire homeowners. A lot of the green roofs that are really fabulous and gorgeous are on high-rises – invisible to most. We thought it would be fun to bring it down to eye level.” ~ Project Coordinator  Tiffany Ledesma Groll, Office of Watersheds.

These Roofmeadow designed kits can be put up around city bus shelters by others, too. What a nice way to celebrate your city – Happy 4th of July, Philadelphia and everyone!

~ Linda V.