CitiesGoGreen - December 2008 - (Page 16)

High Performance Buildings Chicago Center for Green Technology Five years after completion, architects of a pioneering LEED building in Chicago discuss the difficulties faced and lessons learned. by Page Buono O nly the third building to achieve LEED Platinum certification, the Chicago Center for Green Technology was completed in 2003. Its design process still holds as a model of integrated and sustainable design. History An illegal dump, the site was 17 acres of construction and building debris, piled seven stories high, containing some 600,000 pounds of concrete. This is where the City of Chicago envisioned its first LEED Platinum building. What was once a dump is now the home of the artistic and beautiful Chicago Center for Green Technology (CCGT). The renovated 1952 building is 34,000 sq. ft. of green technology and green education, and part of the roof and the remainder of the site are covered in environmentally responsible landscaping. The City of Chicago and the Chicago Department of the Environment (DOE) 16 obtained rights to the land in court, fol- to manage the project, FARR Associates, lowed by the Chicago DOE spending $9 that they wanted to meet the highest million to clean it up. They saved money standard—they wanted the building to by recycling concrete and stone Integrated design involves educating everyone into other city projects. The City involved in the project about the goals, and getting put up $5.5 million for the renovation. everyone involved in meeting them early on. Not including the land, the project cost approximately $14.4 million. be exemplary. The goal was not only to The award-winning building (see list, build to LEED standards, but to illustrate pg 17) is the only renovation to earn LEED and offer education after completion. Platinum status. Served by two major bus Today the building is an interpretive lines, it is the only LEED Platinum building center with displays on geothermal enaccessible by public transportation. Bike ergy, green roofs and passive solar panels, storage and showers for bike commuters all included in the structure. are also provided, along with recharging The difficulties of renovation matched stations for electric vehicles. the benefits. All the original building structure was kept, which drastically reduced waste. Working around existing Integrated design process ventilation and the position of the buildFrom the beginning, the City of Chicago ing, however, required a lot of innovative stressed to the architectural firm chosen December 2008 ©Farr Associates Architecture | Planning | Preservation, Chicago, Illinois http://citiesgogreen.com/issues/december-2008/efficient-buildings/chicago-center-for-green-technology http://citiesgogreen.com/issues/december-2008/efficient-buildings/chicago-center-for-green-technology http://citiesgogreen.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of CitiesGoGreen - December 2008

Citites Go Green Contents In Motion We’re Taking Steps 10,000 Rain Gardens in Kansas City Chicago Center for Green Technology Connecticut’s ‘One Thing’ Green Infrastructure for Stormwater Management Philadelphia The Economics of What Matters New Context: New Possibility

CitiesGoGreen - December 2008

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