C2AE recently announced that it has achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) Gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for the Hastings Public Library in Hastings, MI, making this the first and only public library in the state of Michigan to receive this level of certification.
C2AE served as the architect of record for the project. Design services included architectural design; civil, mechanical, electrical, and structural engineering; project management; landscape architecture; and LEED certification services and construction administration. C2AE worked closely with the library staff and the construction management firm, The Christman Company, to propose systems and materials, and recommended substitutions that substantially reduced the project budget.
"The library staff was adamant that the new library be 'green,' so achieving LEED certification was a goal from the very beginning," states Dennis Jensen, Design architect and principal for C2AE. The main features include the building's image, which references downtown Hastings' 1900s-era façade character; sun screens for daylight control; a four-element, high-efficiency window system; light shelves to bounce daylight deep into the interior; high-performance roof and wall systems; a low-velocity floor discharge heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) system; high-efficiency lighting and plumbing fixtures; a recycle center for library refuse; a rain garden for filtering site contaminants; and a 1,600-square-foot roof garden.
Recycled, refurbished and sustainable materials are used throughout the library, including carpeting, chairs, desks, and wall coverings, which contributed to the USGBC's award of LEED Gold certification to the new building.
"This is such a great achievement for everyone who played a part," said Ray Tadgerson, P.E., chief executive officer for C2AE."I am proud of the entire project team for making this project so successful, and we are especially pleased to have exceeded our initial goal of LEED Silver," continued Tadgerson.
C2AE is also assisting the library on the installation of solar panels to generate electricity, which should be completed this year.
The USGBC is a nonprofit membership organization whose vision is a sustainable built environment within a generation. Its membership includes corporations, builders, universities, government agencies, and other nonprofit organizations. Since USGBC's founding in 1993, the Council has grown to more than 13,000 member companies and organizations, a comprehensive family of LEED green building rating systems, an expansive educational offering, the industry's popular Greenbuild International Conference and Expo, and a network of 72 local chapters, affiliates and organizing groups. For more information, visit www.usgbc.org. The LEED Green Building Rating System™ is a feature-oriented rating system that awards buildings points for satisfying specified green building criteria. The six major environmental categories of review include: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality, and Innovation and Design.
C2AE is a full-service architectural, engineering and planning firm. C2AE offers a wide range of specialized services for a broad spectrum of market sectors, including K-12 and post-secondary education, health care, industrial, municipalities, recreational facilities, site planning, transportation, and wastewater/water infrastructure.
