University of Hartford - Hursey Center

The 25,000 sf Omni Meadow atop the Hursey Center at the University of Hartford was installed on a 1:12 sloped roof, allowing excellent viewing opportunities from the campus quadrangle. Omni’s seeded meadows express differently across projects, informed by growth media depth, site conditions, and season, among other factors. The Hursey Center meadow, with unimpeded sunlight and 5” depth of Omni Infinity Media, grew explosively in its first two months, with heavy blooming and sunflowers reaching nine feet tall.

In addition to seeds, green roof installer and maintenance provider Recover Green Roofs planted plugs of native plant species to increase floral diversity and provide cover for local wildlife, including hummingbirds, which Recover spotted nectaring just weeks after seeding.

When viewed from the south entrance side, the Hursey Center seems smaller than it is, with only one story of cladding below the ascending green roof which hides the four-story height of the building’s north vertical exterior. Inside, 59,000 sf of innovative learning space supports classwork in engineering and nursing. The green roof helps cool the building on hot days, captures thousands of gallons of stormwater, and brings a large pollinator garden to the heart of campus.