December 15, 2017
The recently constructed Streetsboro High School is among an exclusive list of only seven high schools in Ohio to achieve LEED Gold status. LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, is a globally recognized symbol of excellence in green building. LEED for Schools is a specific program focusing on the needs of school buildings, from clean air and recycled materials use to energy efficient heating and air conditioning systems that save on utility bills for the life of the building. Districts receiving funding from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission are required to be rated LEED Silver, the second rating in a 4-level system consisting of Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. Streetsboro went a step further to achieve Gold certification within the state-provided construction budget. This means that more points within the rating system were achieved than in a typical LEED school building for the same dollars, which creates a better overall environment for the students, teachers and staff. Healthy spaces, like the ones designed by FMD Architects at Streetsboro High School, have been proven to increase productivity and test scores over school buildings that do not implement the strategies found within LEED. It was important to the District that the team emphasize strategies that would achieve the best long term outcome. Accordingly, the project achieved high points in the categories of Energy and Atmosphere, Indoor Environmental Air Quality, and Water Efficiency. For example, special plumbing fixtures that reduce water use enabled the District to reduce the cost of incoming water lines and save long term on water bills. Points were also achieved during construction as Hammond Construction helped oversee a construction waste management plan and implemented indoor air quality management plans both during construction and right before occupancy. The design and construction teams also worked together to source both recycled materials and regional materials to contribute to the overall sustainability of the building. Additional details about the LEED rating system can be found on the US Green Building Council’s website at https://new.usgbc.org/
