Rochester mayor Lovely Warren, Rochester councilmember Elaine Spaull, Tom Gears of SWBR, Kimberly Russell of Home Leasing, Nelson Leenhouts of Home Leasing, and Monroe County executive Cheryl Dinolfo

Rochester, NY Home Leasing’s Charlotte Sq. celebrated its grand opening June 19. Designed by SWBR, the apartment complex was recently certified as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) for Homes Gold, an award for projects that recognize sustainable living for their residents.

Located in the city’s East End arts and cultural district, Charlotte Sq. is a four-story, 100,000 s/f apartment building with amenity space and a 30,000 s/f garage. It offers a walkable and bikeable community close to the arts and cultural district. In addition to 72 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, the complex features community, media and fitness centers, a rooftop terrace and a pocket park. The ground-floor parking garage has a car charging station and bike storage.

SWBR included solar panels that are projected to produce up to 50% of the energy the building uses, low- and no-VOC paints to promote indoor air quality, and water and energy conserving fixtures installed throughout. The project was also involved with the NYSERDA Low-Rise Program and the Energy Star for Homes Program, which worked in concert to achieve a high level of sustainability.

“Charlotte Sq. met the stringent requirements of LEED’s three rating systems to achieve a design with high energy efficiencies and utilized materials that have a low negative impact on the environment and human health,” SWBR project architect Rob Fornataro said. 

“We welcome projects like this that are good examples of the appropriate use of our resources. This establishes a high bar for all future development opportunities in this area.”