Green Schools

Green Schools

Ashley McGraw Architects Designs New York's First Net Zero Energy School District Building

Tue

May

Designed by Syracuse-based Ashley McGraw Architects' Advanced Building Studio, the Liberty Central School District's new Media Center in Liberty, New York could become the state's first net zero energy school district building after it breaks ground this summer. The 4000-square-foot Media Center should open in time for the 2010 school year; many of the project's green design strategies are those which critics of the recent NAIOP study (which we wrote about extensively over at GRELJ) decried as lacking in the study's methodoloy, which concluded that 30 to 50 percent reductions in energy consumption over ASHRAE 90.1-2004 were not practicable for most owners given current technologies and corresponding payback periods. For example, Ashley McGraw implemented a comprehensive site orientation and daylighting strategy, designing the structure's shape and windows to provide sufficient natural north light to the project's interiors, as well as low-level south- and west-facing windows which will reduce both solar heat gain and corresponding cooling loads.

Ithaca Opens Platinum Doors on $18M Business School by Robert A.M. Stern

Fri

Feb

by Stephen Del Percio

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Last Tuesday, Ithaca College unveiled its new 38,000-square-foot, $18 million School of Business building, designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects. The project is aiming for a LEED Platinum rating and will include a Center for Sustainable Management to incorporate green business principles into Ithaca’s MBA program. The project team, which also included Gilbane Building Co., used a computer model to passively design the structure according to solar movement. The project also features a green roof, graywater system, and locally-sourced construction materials. Approximately 96 percent of construction waste was been diverted from local landfills, and the building’s glass façade includes photovoltaics and solar water-heating panels.

10,000 Sq. Ft. Green Roof Approved for Village's P.S. 41

Thu

Nov

by Stephen Del Percio

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Public School 41 received approval last Thursday from the School Construction Authority ("SCA") for a 10,000-square-foot green roof. The school, located at 116 West 11th Street in Greenwich Village, will begin installing the roof next summer. P.S. 41 has retained the Jonathan Rose Companies to supervise the project, which is known as Gell- the Greenroof Environmental Literacy Laboratory. Gell will provide P.S. 41’s K-5 student body with an interactive learning center; each grade will engage in a different curriculum focused generally around educating students as to how they can improve their local urban environment.

Carlstadt Public School (NJ) Receives LEED Silver from USGBC

Sun

Oct

by Stephen Del Percio

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We wrote about the Carlstadt Public School earlier this year, but the School's receipt of its LEED Silver rating earlier this week deserves additional mention. Designed by Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey-based DMR Architects, the project earned 36 LEED points for a variety of sustainable features that will help the building reduce its water and energy consumption by thirty percent. USGBC President Rick Fedrizzi noted that the "Carlstadt Public School and DMR Architects are to be congratulated for achieving LEED certification. . . . The certification . . . sends a message that the Board of Education cares about the health of the building's users and employees." Construction on the project began back in 2005, and the School was dedicated this past June; it's the first school in Bergen County to earn a LEED rating from USGBC.

New York City Department of Education and School Construction Authority Unveil NYC Green Schools Guide and Rating System

Wed

Mar

by Stephen Del Percio

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Introduced just yesterday through a joint effort from the Department of Education and School Construction Authority, the New York City Green Schools Guide and Rating System (“GSG”) will apply to all new school construction, modernization, and renovation projects in the five boroughs. The GSG and Rating System is based on LEED, but also incorporates elements from the Collaborative for High Performing Schools Rating System (developed by Washington, Massachusetts, and New York States) and the School Construction Authority's Best Practices. It's intended to complement Local Law 86 (which mandates LEED Silver for most public projects in New York City) and, according to Schools Chancellor Joel Klein, is one of the nation's first (and certainly the largest) school districts to create and implement a green rating system for schools.