New buildings taking city's LEED

By Naoibh O'Connor-Staff writer

All new city buildings could be constructed to high environmental standards if council approves a staff recommendation expected later this spring.

The standard, already adopted by other Canadian cities, including Calgary, is called "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design" or LEED, and ensures structures are water and energy efficient and built from environmentally friendly materials.

There are three levels-certified, silver or gold-under the U.S.-based rating system, depending on how "green" builders go.

While the buildings cost more initially, the expenditure is offset over the long term by savings from energy efficiency.

Two of the city's most recent projects-the new public works yard on Chess Street and the Mount Pleasant Community Centre-are being constructed to meet either gold or silver LEED status.

Dale Mikkelsen, a planning analyst for the city, said the public works yard has been submitted for gold status, although it's in the midst of a final certification review.

The new facility is expected to use 40 per cent less power and up to half the water of the previous Cambie works yard, using motion-sensitive lights, geothermal heating, low-flow toilets and other energy-saving techniques.

"It's pretty much guaranteed a silver, but we may even get gold on that," he said. "We like the idea of a green building program because it gives us third-party verification. It's not something where we have to have a lot of extra staff or extra expertise in-house."

Proposals for the community centre, meanwhile, include drawing additional heat from rooms like a gymnasium or fitness room to warm up other areas.

Details of the LEED recommendation to council have yet to be worked out.

Mikkelsen said LEED may be be used as a design guideline or as a requirement, but for now, it would only apply to municipal buildings. "It's very challenging dealing with the private sector to see how we might implement a green building standard-that's still a long ways off," Mikkelsen said, although private developers in the Southeast False Creek development are expected to meet a higher environmental standard.

Green Party trustee Andrea Reimer wants the Vancouver School Board to investigate the possibility of adopting a similar green building policy, since current policy simply forces trustees to select the least expensive bid for new construction.

Reimer hopes to work with fellow trustee Kevin Millsip on the idea.

It's something other school districts have already moved ahead on. In Port Moody, for instance, the district hopes to win a silver or Gold LEED rating for Heritage Mountain Secondary.

As for Vancouver, Mikkelsen is optimistic city council will get on board with the green building model.

"We have a strong [feeling] that the city has a responsibility to move forward with green building and LEED, not just a nationally but [an] internationally recognized tool, so we think council definitely has an appetite for it."