The Student Recreation Center and Erb Memorial Union are currently both under expansion that will result in platinum LEED certification. LEED, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a certification program based on a points system for how sustainable buildings are.
LEED certified buildings stand out in a growing and competitive industry and achieving platinum rank is even more impressive.
The SRC has a primary focus on sustainability while constructing every detail of the expansion that is scheduled to open its doors in January 2015. The goal is to let the building speak for itself when it comes to innovativeness and environmental awareness.
“We wanted to make sure that when you walk in you know you are in an environment that promotes a healthy lifestyle,” Bryan Haunert said, the associate director of facilities and operations services at the SRC.
The platinum certification will make the SRC one of the top recreation centers in the nation with that standing.
“I think it’s awesome that our school is making those efforts to be environmentally concerned,” student Claire Hamilton said. “It puts a good light on our school that we’re making the effort to do that.”
While designing the building’s function and flow, it is an imperative choice to include interactive sustainable features that could educate students and help them understand their environmental impact.
“We’re trying to create an interactive kiosk for students that are interested in learning about the sustainable aspects of the building,” Haunert said.
Some of the energy efficient features that can be found in the renovated SRC with valuable benefits are natural ventilation, daylight harvesting and rainwater collection.
“I think it’s really cool that it will be LEED certified,” freshman Evan Dahlquist said. “That’s one of the reasons I think it is a good decision to do the expansion.”
The EMU also plans to attain platinum LEED certification, the highest standard for buildings in terms of green construction.
Construction is scheduled to finish in summer of 2016, while the grand opening is scheduled for that fall. The expansion will result in approximately 80,000 square feet of new space and 134,000 square feet of renovated space.
“The extra money that it is taking now will definitely pay off in the long term,” freshman Maddie Vansell said. “It sucks to walk through all of this construction but it will be worth it.”
The expansion will accommodate the 24,000 student population, while the current 1970s design can accomodate 16,000 students.
The EMU is making efforts to recycle and reuse materials from the original facility as much as possible while prioritizing sustainable design in the new student wing.
Other platinum LEED certified UO buildings are the Law School and the Wayne Morse Suite in Portland. The Ford Alumni Center is ranked with gold LEED certification as well.