High Performing Buildings - Fall 2010 - (Page 37)

m a n a s s a s P a r k e l e m e n ta r y s C h o o l a n d P r e k i n d e r g a r t e n Manassas Park elementary school and Prekindergarten (MPes) engages students to be stewards of their own environment. Green lights signal it’s time to open the windows. a gage on a cistern shows the rainwater level. a bioretention area doubles as an outdoor classroom. even the pipes of the hVac system are painted red and blue to mimic illustrations of veins and arteries in human bodies. every detail of this school is designed to be an educational opportunity. By WycK KnOx, AIA; AnD SteVe DAVIS, AIA he new elementary school and prekindergarten are the fourth and fifth schools built to replace the city’s first generation of school facilities — premanufactured mobile buildings that were cobbled together when the small city incorporated in 1975. the superintendent continually challenged the design team to make each project better than the previous, and the team incorporated the most successful learning spaces from four previous projects into MPes. “Going green” was the natural next step, and a relatively easy sell to a client who had already witnessed the transformative power of well-designed buildings. t Cost at a completed hard cost of $199.53 per ft2 (including site work), this high performance, LeeD Gold school was constructed at a 12% premium above the state average for new public elementary schools in Opposite the west side of Manassas Park elementary School offers close-up views of the forest, which shades the building from late-day sun. 2008. sustainable features account for about half of the premium. the architect and the owner have been comparing utility bills for MPes to the adjacent cougar elementary. also designed by VMDO architects and 2rw consultants (engineers), cougar opened in January 2001 and comes close to meeting ashrae/IesNa standard 90.1-2004 energy requirements. although slightly smaller, it shares the same site and is operated in the same manner as MPes, making it an accurate, real-world comparison. In its first year of operation MPes saved $0.576 in utility costs per square foot compared to cougar, for an adjusted total savings of $75,560. In fact, the new building is so efficient to operate that the school system held the 2010 summer school program (kindergarten through 12th grade) at MPes, allowing all other school buildings to be placed in unoccupied mode for almost three months. since school operating budgets come from annual property tax revenue, the utility savings were especially valued in a down market. B u i l d i n g at a g l a n C e name manassas Park elementary school and Prekindergarten location manassas Park, Va. owner manassas Park City schools Principal use Public elementary education includes dedicated prekindergarten building; upper elementary building for grades three through five has 59 classrooms, gym, cafeteria plus dining commons, media center, offices and breakout spaces for informal and nontraditional learning employees/occupants 840 students and educators, with 50-plus visitors per day gross square footage 140,463 (mPes and Prekindergarten) Conditioned space 131,702 Total Construction Cost $24,698,200 ($28,026,925 including site work) Cost Per square foot $175.83 ($199.53 total hard costs) substantial Completion/occupancy April 2009 occupancy 85% distinctions/Awards leed gold-nC v. 2.2; AiA Committee on the environment 2010 Top Ten Award; AiA Committee on Architecture for education 2010 educational facility design Award of merit fa l l 2 0 1 0 HigH Performing Buildings 37

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of High Performing Buildings - Fall 2010

High Performing Buildings - Fall 2010
Table of Contents
IDeAs Z2 Design Facility
Lighting Design Alliance
Manassas Park Elementary School and Prekindergarten
FC Gulf Freeway Office Building
Capturing Condensate
National Australian Built Environment Rating System
Tyson Living Learning Center

High Performing Buildings - Fall 2010