Project Portfolio

Skywater’s Strategy

The developer partnered with nonprofits Downtown Phoenix Community Development Corporation and Arizona Bridge to Independent Living to craft this three-story urban loft in the city’s historic Roosevelt Neighborhood. Designed to provide affordable housing for low- and moderate-income working seniors, the project became the first LEED Platinum housing project in Arizona. Located in the Sonoran Desert, the city epitomizes the idea that every drop of rain counts: it receives an average seven inches each year.

We located storage and equipment for the commercial-grade active rainwater harvesting system in the underground parking garage. Up top, the roof provided nearly 20,000 sq. ft. of collection area, calling for high-capacity vortex pre-filters to collect streamlined runoff. We also used vortex filters to interrupt patio and planter drains. A float-valve backup system automatically refills and connects to city make-up water supply when needed. Stored rainwater is pressurized and connected to the irrigation system, with overflow efficiently plumbed back into roof drains.