Use of pervious concrete required construction crews and subcontractors to team with a local consultant who specialized in the product, which led to the successful installation of 30,000 sq ft of the material.

Photo by Jerry Smith

The Cuisine Solutions facility is the largest participant in San Antonio’s Big Sun Community Solar program. The facility’s 300-space parking area is shaded by solar panels that are available for purchase by area residents. The clean, renewable energy generated by the panels (up to 780 kilowatts) is sent to the local utility’s energy grid, and the savings are credited to the owner’s home electric bill.

Photo by Jerry Smith

Another sustainable innovation at the facility is the management of stormwater runoff. Parking areas designed as bioswales concentrate and convey stormwater runoff while filtering out debris. Civil and landscape engineers designed the system, and Stellar constructed it in the field. The bioswale runs 4 ft below the ground at its deepest point and includes a vapor barrier to prevent excess water from leaking into the soil below. This particular low-impact design is the first of its kind in the city of San Antonio.