Designed For Water, Energy, Materials Efficiency
DOWNTOWN BROOKLYN — The city’s Office of Emergency Management (OEM) headquarters in Downtown Brooklyn has achieved LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it was announced yesterday.
LEED is the USGBC’s system for evaluating the greenest, energy efficient and high performing buildings.
The OEM building, on Cadman Plaza East, designed by Swanke Hayden Connell Architects as a green building, is the first city agency headquarters — and one of only nine buildings citywide — to achieve this status, according to Rick Fedrizzi, president and CEO of the USGBC.
Joining OEM Commissioner Joseph Bruno in making the announcement were David Burney, commissioner of the city’s Department of Design and Construction; Rohit Aggarwala, director of the Office of Long-term Planning and Sustainability; and Michael Deane, USGBC board member.
OEM’s headquarters, which opened last fall, was designed to achieve LEED certification for site selection, water and energy efficiency, material use and a variety of other sustainable strategies.
“OEM is engaged in environmental issues year round — air quality, water and energy conservation, climate issues, debris management — these are areas of strong familiarity to us,” said Bruno. “Given these concerns, we felt a responsibility to create a building that was healthier for our staff, healthier for the environment, and could serve as a leading example for other City agencies.”
Commented Fedrizzi, “The New York Office of Emergency Management LEED Silver rating is an important first for a New York municipal building....This building will be a great way for people to see first-hand the role green buildings can play in making cities healthier places to live and work.”
The following are among the building’s sustainable features include:
• Reduced Heat Island Effect — The roof is surfaced with light colored materials, including pavers made from recycled content, to reflect sunlight rather than absorb it.
• Reused Materials — The columns and floors are from the former Red Cross headquarters.
• Use of Local Manufacturers — 20 percent of the materials in the building were manufactured locally.
• Waste Diversion — During construction, 50 percent of waste was diverted from landfills.
• Low-Emitting Materials — These contain low volatile organic compounds including the paint, furniture, adhesives, and carpet.
• Water Efficiency — The building uses 33 percent less water than a conventional building by employing low flow fixtures and waterless urinals and eliminating the need for landscape irrigation by using native species of plants.
• Indoor Environmental Quality — The facility controls indoor chemical and pollutant sources and its windows have efficient thermal properties, reducing solar heat gain which lowers the overall amount of energy that must be used to cool the building to a comfortable temperature.
The $50 million facility represents the first permanent home for OEM since its previous headquarters were destroyed on September 11th. Since that time, interim space was used at Pier 92 in Manhattan and in DUMBO.
© Brooklyn Daily Eagle 2007
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