Built as window-less gym, transformed into a window-less bathhouse, re-used as a window-less event hall and now re-launched as a window-less animal hospital, Bodhi is anything but sustainable. This particular corner of North Park has suffered from brutal, unyielding architecture all its life. Unfortunately, the birth of Bodhi is just as brutal and unwelcoming as before. Sustainability is not purchasing a sea of polycarbonate solar tubes that offer zero cross ventilation. Sustainability is not designing massive steel support arms that require massive footings to support delicate solar arrays just to egotistically flaunt perceived sustainability. Sustainability is not walling yourself off to the pedestrian experience in a walk-able community such as North Park. Sustainability is not supplying a pure white canvas that welcomes graffiti and requires hundreds of gallons of white paint over the buildings life time to maintain. Just because you throw some Solar Tubes, Solar Panels and some Cactus on a project and paint it pristine white, does not make it a project that is SUSTAINABLE.

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The dilapidated interiors of this 1940's triplex were revitalized on a bare shoestring budget of DIY labor, re-used materials, and sustainable fixtures. Re-use: Original cabinets, bathtubs, kitchen sinks and hardwood floors in all (3) apartments were saved and refurbished. The butcherblock countertop in apartment #2's kitchen was donated from a neighbor's scrap pile and brought back to life. The ceasarstone countertop in apartment #3's kitchen was a remnant from another neighbor's remodeling project. The bathroom countertop in apartment #1 is made up of a vintage papercutting board rescued from an alley. The polycarbonate shower enclosure was partially constructed from manufacturer's discards. Eighteen gallons of leftover paint recovered at neighborhood yard sales was mixed into custom colors and diverted from the landfill. Sustainable: Two 50,000 BTU over-sized malfunctioning heaters were replaced with 25,000 BTU heaters sized appropriately for the small apartments. The combination of dual-flush toilets and low GPM water fixtures reduced the water bill by 40%. The old bathroom sinks and toilets were given away on Craigslist for free. Nearly all of the other materials such as plywood, 2x4's, screws, nails, caulk, construction adhesive, etc. were purchased at neighborhood yard sales. Finally, the handtools and power tools were purchased from yard sales, rented, or borrowed. By continuously adapting design ideas to available re-useable materials, previously rundown apartments were modernized and transformed into affordable living spaces, reducing utility bills and raising rent by only 7%.

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The Charles David Keeling Apartments are located on the southwestern edge of the University of California, San Diego, campus overlooking the coastal cliffs of La Jolla. Named for the American scientist whose research first alerted the world to the possibility of the human impact on global warming, the Apartments are themed around the concept of global warming and the urgency of conservation of natural resources. They are part of Revelle College, the founding college at UC San Diego named for Roger Revelle, one of the first scientists to study global warming, and are developed to enhance Revelle's place at the historic campus core. Three cast-in-place concrete structures—one 10-story, one 8-story, and one 5-story—are oriented for optimal environmental performance in San Diego’s ideal climate. They provide housing for 516 students and 2 deans in 85 six-person apartments. The complex also includes lounges and meeting rooms, a landscaped courtyard, green roof terrace, and extensive outdoor walkways to promote social interaction and outdoor living. The apartments are arranged along a single-loaded exterior corridor so that each space within the unit receives abundant daylight, natural ventilation, and views. The design bears familial relationships with the buildings of Revelle, which consist of 1950s cast-in-place concrete structures that often have a sense of transparency at the base and exterior elevated walkways that allow for free flow of pedestrian traffic, sun and breezes. Many of the buildings share a lace-like quality from the use of repetitive elements, with a color palette tied to San Diego’s warm and dry coastal climate. Together with the recent renovation of the adjacent Fleet residence halls, Revelle college is now more unified with old and new structures that create shared spaces and define the west edge of the campus.The exterior is clad with precast concrete panels, hung in front of the structure as rain screens. The layering of the structure, window and rain screen systems creates visual depth in the facade that varies throughout the day as lighting conditions change. Solar heat gain is controlled with deep overhangs shading the southern facades and vertical shading devices on the west, oriented at different angles, blocking strong afternoon sun. Storm water is managed with a green roof, biofiltration swale and landscaping and water is conserved through the collection and treatment of gray water for irrigation, efficient plumbing fixtures, and water efficient planting. A photovoltaic array provides solar energy in the building, and energy is conserved by using a high performance exterior envelope and optimizing day lighting and ventilation. The project seeks to outperform Title 24 (California Energy Code) by at least 35%, and is expected to minimally earn LEED Gold, and potentially a Platinum rating for environmentally conscious design and sustainability. Construction will be complete in Fall 2011 with full occupancy in September.

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Our Story - Green Gardens Grow at Mathew Sherman Elementary The projects will create an outdoor learning environment that holistically weaves together themes of gardening, eating healthy foods, living sustainably, renewable energy, reclaiming water, and recycling, all in a package that will be fun, understandable and inspiring for the children and staff. The Green Gardens Grow demonstration project will be constructed on a vacant 160’x35’ plot of City School’s property abutting Sherman Elementary, located in a highly diverse neighborhood just East of downtown San Diego. The projects will create an outdoor learning environment that holistically weaves together themes of gardening, eating healthy foods, living sustainably, renewable energy, reclaiming water, and recycling-all in a package that will be fun,understandable and inspiring for the children and staff alike. What better place to learn about the biological lifecycle of a butterfly than in a garden with real butterflies? Whether the children are pondering math problems, creating art, learning science terms, or contemplating conservation ideas; each lesson will be enhanced by ‘garden-based learning’, a hands-on experience using nature as an educational tool. This new outdoor space will also provide a non-traditional setting for teachers and students to interact in a way that supports and reinforces the school’s indoor bilingual curriculum. Each element in the garden, both living and manmade, will exclaim embedded lessons, i.e. donated metal cargo containers will be repurposed as the support space for outdoor lessons, recycled hardwood slats from discarded shipping pallets (ubiquitous in this industrial neighborhood), will be used as decorative siding to partially clad the containers. Individual solar PV panels typically hidden from sight will instead be celebrated; mounted on poles and arranged like petals of a giant flower providing on-site power generation and welcome shade. Water, the region’s most precious natural resource, will also be integrated into the design; rainwater will be collected into a cistern, alkways will be permeable and won’t contribute to urban runoff, and a water reclamation system that harvests gray water from the exterior hand washing sink will irrigate drought tolerant native plants. Perhaps the garden could be opened on weekends in conjunction with the adjacent empty staff parking lot to support a community serving farmer’s market? It is hoped that this green garden oasis will attract more than pollinators, or inquisitive children, but in fact draw the surrounding neighborhood of Sherman Heights to this place designed to foster an appreciation of community enriching, healthy, sustainable environments. The seeds of this inspired and creative place are being sown right now-green, gardens, grow!

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The University of California, San Diego Sulpizio Family Cardiovascular Center has just been awarded LEED® Gold certification. The 120,000 square foot addition to Thornton Hospital is focused on comprehensive heart health by combining clinic spaces, non-invasive procedure rooms, cardio surgery rooms and recovery beds all under one roof. The design process of the facility began in 2005, well before the LEED guidelines for Healthcare were established. It was important to both UCSD and the design team to create a building that was as thoughtful to the environment as possible, even though LEED certification was not a possibility at that time. The facility design takes full advantage of the movement of the sun with shading devices and massing elements to minimize heat gain and thus reduce energy consumption. The design also embraces the idea of blurring the lines between interior and exterior to provide the facility with a "natural" feel that picks up on the stunning geography of the nearby coastal canyons. During the construction process in 2008, UCSD asked the construction and design team to work together to achieve a LEED certified building under LEED NC guidelines. After some initial investigation, the team found that LEED Silver was readily achievable. After its completion, the building was certified LEED Gold with very little additional cost and only minor adjustments, a remarkable achievement considering it had such a late start in the certification process. We are proud that one of our 'innovation and design' credits was awarded for creating a uniquely collaborative team that allowed us to maximize opportunities for integrated and cost-effective delivery. This not only produced a LEED Gold certified building, but also a beautiful hospital that was constructed on schedule, under budget and will provide superb heart health to the San Diego community for years to come.

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Licensed contractor and real estate developer, Lorrie Webb, has a great passion for recycling, reimaging, and repurposing existing structures. She strives to create the least negative impact on the environment by using sustainable materials and new techniques. Webb jumped on the oppportunity to revitalize an old medical office built in the 1960s. Webb converted the space into individual offices to create a collective and unique office environment known as the Meade. Webb, with the help of designer Kenneth Brown, used imagery and decor that was inspired by artist Charley Harper. She focused on bringing in lots of natural light.

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Unable to descripe, should be hands down winner without voting. I'd take a picture but camera might blow-up in discuss. I'll let someone else do the dirty work of a photo.

From AECCafe.com:

"The new 332,150-square-foot Public Safety Center is a five-story structure with 212,750 square feet of parking integrated on three levels. The state-of-the-art facility includes administrative and operational space for all police divisions. It also features a modern communication and dispatch center, an emergency operations center, community meeting room, indoor firing range, crime laboratory, property processing and evidence storage area, short-term custody facility, and a central data center. The team designed the “green” building to meet the LEED Gold standard, installing energy efficient IT and AV equipment throughout the building to reduce energy consumption. The project includes an energy efficient mechanical system, natural ventilation, solar power, an efficient lighting system and other renewable energy highlights."

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Built by Swinerton Renewable Energy, this project involved installation of 4,480 Yingli YL230Pb-29b 230 watt photovoltaic solar panel modules. Modules were mounted on an elevated structure on top of a parking structure, ground mounted elevated car port structures, and a medical office building roof and are tilted at a 10 degree angle oriented to the south. The modules are series wired as 320 strings of 14 modules wired in parallel and connected to one (1) 500kw and one (1) 333kw AE Solaran bipolar intercooled inverters with Remote PV Ties. The inverters are connected to two separate existing building services. Both AC and DC Disconnects installed and total output achieved 1,030.4 kwP DC. Work was completed on an 100% occupied Kaiser MOB facility.

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As San Diego's smart new workplace solution, Co-Merge has integrated the very latest in communications technology with a number of eco-friendly features to enhance sustainability. The result is a new twist on the virtual office that will become the platform for future Co-Merge locations locally and nationally. The 9,000-square-foot collaborative workspace at 330 A St. in downtown San Diego is the result of extensive research and planning by founders Michael Kenny and Robert Conrad. The pair assembled a team that included Carrier Johnson + CULTURE, Wimmer Yamada and Caughey, Crawford & Co. and BYCOR General Contractors, all of whom are committed to sustainable design and construction efforts.

This dedication to green building is based on Co-Merge's emphasis on collaboration. At Co-Merge, users will benefit from a custom professional networking system that allows them to share online documents and go paperless, while also expanding their network to include other members. Wireless, video conference rooms and private conference rooms are available for rent, also by the hour or day. The design of the workspace is open and contemporary to facilitate more interaction and a spirit of collaboration. The workplace solution provides users with the ability to use and pay for space on a convenient hourly "drop in" rate with no minimum required, or an affordable monthly unlimited membership.

Developing Co-Merge responsibly was also very important to Joseph P. Kenny & Associates. During demolition of the 50-year-old building, more than 120 tons of debris were diverted from landfills and recycled. More than 90 percent of the steel used in construction consists of recycled content. Insulation is also made from recycled materials and is formaldehyde free. Co-Merge's other eco-friendly features include: HVAC refrigerant technology, programmable thermostats, water saving electric faucets/low volume fixtures, utilizing glass with a reflective coating which filters UV rays, a roof system composed of a bright white reflective coating to help keep the building cooler thus using less energy, a "Live" roof which includes live plants and provides noise reduction and energy and water conservation, steel ceilings and flooring composed of recycled content, lighting system connected to motion sensors to provide lighting only when the space is occupied, T-8 high efficiency lights with energy saving fluorescent bulbs, State-of-the-art energy saving LED units with an "Energy Star" rating and low volatile organic (low VOC) compound adhesives.

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Located on the corner of 30th and Highland Ave, the new Gateway Complex is an 81,000-square-foot, three-story building equipped with 34 classrooms, wireless technology, interactive white boards, a counseling and health center, as well as new administration and student services offices, a new library and a 200-seat theater. It is pursuing the highest LEED Certification, LEED Platinum. The design incorporates some of Sweetwater High School's classic elements into the new building while also integrating many exciting high-tech and sustainable features. BCA Architects Lead Designer, Samer Kawar: "Not only did we design a ‘green’ building to save energy and money for the District, but we also intended for the building itself to be used as a tool to help teach students invaluable lessons regarding the importance of protecting our environment and our energy future.” The design of the Gateway Complex project began in August 2007 and broke ground in June 2009. After exactly four years of design and construction and a $760,000 High Performance Incentive Grant, the prominent new facility is now open for students and the community to enjoy. BCA Architects incorporated numerous features into the building’s design to enhance the efficiency and student experience, including: • Water efficient fixtures, faucets and landscaping – will save 650,000 gallons of water each year • Energy efficiency measures – will provide the district more than $35,000 in energy savings each year • Natural lighting throughout – enhances ambiance and proven to increase overall student test scores • Increased thermal ventilation – supplies students and faculty with fresher and cleaner air

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