LEED Certification Awarded to Two 7group Projects

During the 3rd quarter of 2014, the Ferguson Township Elementary School earned LEED BD+C for Schools v2009 Silver certification, and the Lakeside Center Ice Rink achieved LEED NC v2.2 Gold certification.

As part of the State College Area School District’s facilities master plan, the existing 15,400 sf Ferguson Township Elementary School, located in Pine Grove Mills, PA, was renovated in conjunction with adding 50,300 square feet of new construction, thereby expanding the school’s capacity to 500 students. The planning process for this project began with a series of community workshops facilitated by 7group that brought together more than 200 individuals from the school’s administration, faculty/staff and student body, as well as members of the community. These workshops were aimed at aligning all stakeholders around both overall district goals and the project’s objectives, and resulted in establishing co-created performance targets, including sustainability goals and LEED certification. This process culminated in a state of the art school that earned LEED BD+C for Schools v2009 Silver certification. The final design preserved many of the original architectural features of the existing building, such as the 1930’s main entry and classroom façade, while incorporating numerous sustainable elements that promote environmental stewardship, student performance, occupant health and operational cost savings. Many of these attributes allow the building to actively serve as a teaching tool, including rain and butterfly gardens, Building Dashboards to monitor energy usage in real time, compass markings painted on the floor designating solar and magnetic north, deliberately exposed structural components, as well as mechanical and plumbing pipes that are color-coded to indicate hot water, cold water, harvested rainwater and the gray water system. Other features include a ground-source heat pump HVAC system, solar hot water heating, reflective roof systems, roof monitors that provide bilateral daylighting within classrooms, photocell sensors that greatly reduce the need for electric lighting, enhanced thermal envelope, low flow plumbing fixtures, exterior light shelves and solar shading devices, as well as reused, renewable and recycled materials.

The Prospect Park Alliance, in partnership with the City of New York and the community, is charged with restoring, developing and operating Prospect Park located in Brooklyn, NY, for the enjoyment of all by caring for the natural environment, preserving historic design and serving the public through facilities and new programs. The park was designed and created in 1867 by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux after they completed Manhattan’s Central Park. The park’s latest capital project, Prospect Park Lakeside Center, replaced the aging and physically deteriorating Wollman ice rink that had served the public for nearly 50 years. The new facility includes modern public amenities and two new multi-function, open-air rinks that provide approximately 32,000 sf square feet of skating surface. The rinks were designed for year-round use: during the summer, one rink is used for roller skating and the other for children’s water play; in the winter, the rinks are used for hockey, figure skating and recreational skating. Public amenities include a skate rental and changing area, lockers, a kitchen and café, gift shop, multi-function party and educational rooms, and public restrooms, all housed within two new support buildings integrated into the Park’s topography. The project’s impacts on the environment were minimized through features including low flow plumbing fixtures that save over 205,000 gallons of water each year, a 15,000 gallon rainwater harvesting cistern that collects rainwater used to irrigate the green roofs of the support buildings, and an extensive system of basins that treat and infiltrate rainwater on-site to eliminate drainage into an already overburdened city sewer system. Additionally, over 84% of construction waste was sorted and recycled (preventing over 420 tons of waste from reaching landfills), over 38% of the materials used were locally sourced, and over 26% of the materials used are composed of recycled material. Bike racks on site accommodate 90 bicycles with paths linked to cycling infrastructure and encourage non-automobile transportation to the building. These features and strategies earned the project LEED NC v2.2 Gold certification by creating a healthy setting for visitors and staff.

Including these projects, 7group has collaborated on 94 forward-thinking projects that have been recognized and awarded for their green efforts through LEED, Living Building Challenge and Green Globes certifications. We look forward to collaborating with other innovative project teams aimed at developing cutting-edge sustainable designs.