AGENDA #14
MEMORANDUM
TO: Mayor and Town Council
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Response to Petition - Expedited Review for LEED Certified Developments
DATE: June 26, 2006
PURPOSE
The purpose of this memorandum is to provide additional information regarding a proposal to grant Expedited Review to LEED “Silver” certified developments.
Adoption of the attached resolution would add a fourth criterion to the Council-endorsed criteria used when making recommendations to the Council on requests for expedited processing:
▪ meet or exceed LEED “Silver” certification, including:
a level of energy performance that exceeds by 20 percent the energy standards set by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Condition Engineering (ASHRAE) Code 90.1-2004.
BACKGROUND
On February 27, 2006, the Town Council received a petition from the Mayor which requested that a policy be drafted which would grant Expedited Review for developments that met the criteria for at least a LEED “Silver” certification (Attachment 2). Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification provides a framework for assessing building performance and meeting sustainability goals. Based on scientific standards, LEED certification emphasizes state of the art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.
On May 22, 2006, the Town Council received a memorandum from the Town Manager which contained a list of documentation requirements to be met by applicants seeking expedited processing of LEED “Silver” developments (Attachment 3). At the meeting, a Council Member requested that the documentation requirements be modified to help ensure that projects applying for LEED “Silver” status would be awarded certification upon completion of construction. The Council Member also requested consideration of further energy performance standards.
DISCUSSION
We follow the Council-endorsed criteria listed below when making recommendations to the Council on requests for expedited processing:
We believe that a fourth criterion, for projects that agree to meet energy efficiency standards, could be added to the above list of Council endorsed criteria for expedited projects.
On May 22, 2006, we recommended that the following be added to the expedited processing criteria:
Recommend expedited processing in cases where an applicant has submitted evidence, as endorsed by the Town Council, that the applicant is actively pursuing the development of a project that will meet or exceed the LEED “Silver” level of certification.
As LEED certification is not issued until after completion of the building, we recommended that as part of the expedited processing request, the applicant submit evidence that they are pursuing LEED “Silver” certification, and that this evidence continue to be submitted at various times during the application process to document progress towards achieving LEED “Silver” certification in order to maintain the expedited processing status.
Levels of LEED certification are awarded by the United States Green Building Council when a project’s incorporation of green building practices exceeds a predefined threshold measured in units of points. Points are gathered by incorporating green design strategies from the following categories: Sustainable Site Design; Materials and Resources; Energy and Atmosphere; Environmental Quality; Innovation & Design. Any combination of points from these categories may be used to achieve a level of certification. LEED “Silver” certification is awarded to projects that accumulate between 33 and 38 points (out of a total of 69 possible points).
At the request of a Council Member, the requirement of additional energy efficiency beyond the standard inherent to LEED “Silver” certification was considered for projects seeking Expedited Review. Projects pursuing any level of LEED certification are required at a minimum to meet a level of the energy efficiency prescribed by code 90.1-2004 of the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE). This standard exceeds the energy efficiency requirements set by the current energy state code for the State of North Carolina. However, ASHRAE 90.1-2004 has been adopted by other states, and the U.S. Department of Energy is currently considering its adoption at the federal level.
The LEED rating system is a relatively new way to highlight the “green” focus of projects being built. In its present state, the system may award the same number of points for energy performance beyond ASHRAE 90.1-2004 as it would for other green building methodologies, such as the use of construction materials with recycled content. While acquisition of points in each LEED category will contribute to the overall health of the building, significant positive effects can be attributed exclusively to an increase in energy performance. Energy consumption by buildings represents the largest sector of energy use in the United States. Furthermore, energy performance in buildings has an ongoing impact on factors such as carbon dioxide emissions and the utility cost of powering buildings.
To encourage developments pursuing LEED Silver certification to help the Town meet its commitment to energy efficiency and reduction of carbon dioxide emissions in the built environment, we recommend that the Council follow precedents set by the State of New Mexico, the University of California System, the City of New York, Boston, and others. Policies from these organizations require public buildings and/or private developments of a certain size to meet an additional level of energy efficiency beyond LEED “Silver” certification. We recommend that developments be similarly required to commit to the following additional level of energy efficiency before being granted Expedited Review: a demonstrated intention to exceed by a minimum of 20 percent the energy standards set by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Condition Engineering (ASHRAE) Code 90.1-2004. Fulfilling this requirement would accrue the project a minimum of three points toward the 33-38 points needed to achieve LEED “Silver” certification.
RECOMMENDATION
Manager’s Recommendation: That the Town Council adopt the attached resolution adding a fourth criterion to the Council-endorsed criteria used when making recommendations to the Council on requests for expedited processing:
▪ meet or exceed LEED “Silver” certification, including:
a level of energy performance that exceeds by 20 percent the energy standards set by the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Condition Engineering (ASHRAE) Code 90.1-2004.
Initial and continual expedited treatment would be subject to revised requirements listed in Attachment 1.
ATTACHMENTS