Collegiate Times

The Blacksburg Motor Company's playfully decorated rainwater collection system helps reduce run-off by using rain for other purposes, such as watering a garden.

Green buildings are becoming a concrete reality as Virginia Tech and Blacksburg continue to work together in a commitment to sustainability.

The newly renovated Blacksburg Motor Company on South Main Street and the new Theatre 101 building on College Avenue will be among the first LEED-certified buildings in the town.

LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is an international system of rating buildings based on their environmental impacts. It takes into account water and energy efficiency as well as the materials used during design and construction.

All new construction on campus will be certified on at least the silver level of LEED, according to the Climate Action Commitment Resolution, approved by Tech’s Board of Visitors in June.

The resolution is a 14-point plan that outlines Tech’s goals for environmental friendliness.

The plan includes a commitment to LEED-certified buildings.

Denny Cochrane, manager of the office of sustainability, said that the plan would function as a roadmap for future construction.

“Although we tried to design and build to LEED standards in the past,” Cochrane said, “this puts a little more teeth into it.”

In order to become fully LEED certified, a building must be registered with the United Sates Green Building Council, the independent nonprofit organization that administers and oversees LEED certifications in the U.S.

While neither the Blacksburg Motor Company building nor the Theatre 101 building have received official certifications, both are expected to garner gold certifications.

The certification categories are certified, silver, gold and platinum.

Buildings are given points for water and energy efficiency, the sustainability of the site and the materials used, the indoor environmental quality and the innovation of the design process.The more points a building is awarded, the higher the rating climbs.

The Theatre 101 building, along with the renovation of adjacent Henderson Hall, is expected to receive a gold rating. Cochrane explained the breakdown of the scorecard. Some points are pre-awarded during the design process. During design alone, it won enough points to be certified.

Gillian Rizy, sustainability coordinator for Mosely Architects, the architecture firm that worked on the Henderson Hall renovation, predicted that post-construction, the building would be awarded enough points to hopefully give it a gold certification.

The Blacksburg Motor Company building is also expected to receive a gold rating.

Lenore Duncan, project manager and main architect for the renovations of the Blacksburg Motor Company building, said she expects the building to receive “a very high gold or hopefully platinum.”

Duncan said it is often easier for buildings that have been renovated to receive a higher rating because renovations offer more space for improvement.

“It’s easier to build an efficient building than update an existing one, but you get more points for improving an existing building because the new one is already so efficient,” Duncan said.

Both the Blacksburg Motor Company building, and the Henderson Hall and Theatre 101 projects incorporated certain sustainable features that are characteristic of LEED-certified buildings.

Rizy said that using LEED standardized sustainable features provides a benchmark of progress during the construction process.

“If you’re not tracking your progress, it’s hard to tell how green your project really is,” Rizy said.

Both projects incorporated certain types of recycled building materials. The Forest Stewardship Council certified the wood used in both projects, which means that there were no chemicals used in the processing of the lumber. Additionally, lights were

installed with sensors, so they only turn on when people are in the room.

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