LAKE PLACID, N.Y.—The Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort, located on Main Street in Lake Placid, N.Y., has installed a green roof. On June 10, the 3,400-square-foot GreenGrid Green Roof System was installed atop a portion of the Golden Arrow roof; the project was completed June 11 by Weston Solutions, Inc. and GreenGrid, the company responsible for growing and installing the green roof system. While many businesses are taking steps to becoming green, The Golden Arrow is currently the only resort in New York and the North Country to offer a green roof.
The Golden Arrow’s green roof will provide many benefits to the resort and especially to its surrounding environment, the Adirondack region. Growing in central Connecticut since August 13, 2007, the green roof plants, or modules, consist of a variety of plants and shrubs native to the North Country region. They will be able to survive the region’s varying temperatures that come with the changing of seasons. The modules are actually composed of 60 percent post-industrial recycled material, all sourced from the Northeast region. The green roof will attract and provide a habitat for native birds, as well as for bees, butterflies and other beneficial insects that flourish in the Adirondack region.
The green roof plants will help to improve the air quality by releasing oxygen into the air and also by using their foliage to bind dust. Storm-water runoff will be collected by the green roof which will reduce any urban heat island effect, however minimal in the town of Lake Placid, and prevent erosion caused by water runoff. The collection of water will also be a self-maintenance characteristic of the green roof. Acting as a natural insulator, the green roof will keep heat inside the resort during the winter months and will help to cool it during the summertime. Because of this, energy consumption at the Golden Arrow will decrease.
Addition Will Extend Roof Life
In addition to lowering the resort’s energy costs each year, the green roof will also extend the life of the roof on which it sits. In addition to a roof waterproofing system, a slip sheet of non-woven geo-textile is placed over the existing roof. This cover will not only give the plant modules a base on which to grow, but it will also protect the roof underneath from the effects of nature such as precipitation and sunlight. Provided the roof or modules need repairing, the simple modular system can be removed in sections and then replaced just as easily.
Because the green roof is located almost parallel to the windows of the Golden Arrow’s second-floor restaurant, Charlie’s, the green roof’s variety of foliage will provide an attractive sight for diners in the restaurant. The rooftop garden will also enhance the overall beauty of the resort and property.
The Golden Arrow is a leader in green efforts and programs throughout the North Country and has set high expectations for other green hotels and resorts nationally in their quest to preserve the valuable resources provided by the lush region of the Adirondack Mountains.
Pride Comes With Progress
“We are very proud of all of the initiatives we have put into place to become more earth-friendly,” said Jenn Holderied, owner of the Golden Arrow. “From the limestone beach to the in-room recycling program, we have really come a long way in the last few years.”
The resort has been making advances in their Green Initiative since the program first began in 2005, however the green roof is the biggest step that has been taken. The Golden Arrow is the only resort in the United States to have achieved a Four Green Leaves rating from Audubon International.
“We thought the green roof was a unique and fun way to ‘wear our green on our sleeve,’” said Holderied, who is also the marketing director of the Golden Arrow. “Why put up a sign telling people we are green when we could do it in a way that helps the environment as well? We hope people who travel to Lake Placid will see the roof and become inspired.”
Go to the Golden Arrow.
