Hillcrest earns LEED platinum certification

Author: James Kerrigan

In mid-October, The Franklin Environmental Center at Hillcrest became just the nation's seventh building to earn The United States Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum status, the system's highest level of certification. The announcement publicly recognizes the College's decade-long emphasis on "building green," an essential ingredient in the its commitment to sustainability.

"This recognition is a credit to the creative energy of our faculty, staff, students and the architect who had the vision to transform a farmhouse into an advanced environmental facility while preserving its historic value and character," said President of the College Ronald D. Liebowitz in a Nov. 3 press release.

Asher Burns-Burg '05.5, while a student in Luce Professor of International Environmental Economics Jon Isham's Special Topics in Environmental Economics senior seminar, initiated the idea as a part of his final project three years ago. But what started out as an academic pursuit turned into an actionable plan. He presented his coursework on the importance of LEED certification and the opportunity at Hillcrest to the committee that oversaw the project.

"The persistence of Asher [Burns-Burg] in pushing his initiative was very important," said Isham, who downplayed his role in the Burns-Burg's project. "It was an example of embracing the good idea and getting out of the way."

Burns-Burg and the committee's efforts materialized in 2007, when the College teamed up with architect Steve Smith of SAS Architects in Burlington to complete an adaptive reuse of the existing facility, in coordination with Middlebury's Best Practices for Construction and Demolition Contractors, which include asking the important question: "What can be reused right on site for new construction?"

Motivated by the desire to obtain LEED certification, the architects and builders had to demonstrate that the building met numerous criteria in each of five categories, including: sustainable site, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, and indoor environmental quality. It did so through a careful design process and thoughtful construction choices, according to Project Manager Mark Gleason.

"Hillcrest exceeds other campus buildings in the efforts that were made by the design team, the contractor and the College personnel who worked on the building," said Gleason. "These efforts were necessitated because of the decision to pursue LEED certification."

Much of the original Hillcrest - both its materials and spaces - was preserved in the construction. For example, the southern annex was removed and over 80 percent of the materials were recycled or reclaimed. Although renovation of the original building was the priority, the two-story addition on the south created important new spaces - the seminar room and "The Orchard," a technologically advanced lecture hall with space for 100. Hillcrest also includes 14 offices, a study lounge and several informal meeting areas.

During the construction, contractors used as many local materials as possible, including slate from Poultney, Vt., granite from Barre, Vt. and certified hardwood trim and flooring from College-owned forests. Moreover, the local carpenters helped supply interior furniture to complete the project.

The result has been a success. "This building is a powerful example that green architecture doesn't demand a cleared site and a new foundation - that we know tricks enough these days to make any building work both for its users and for the planet," wrote Scholar-in-Residence in Environmental Studies Bill McKibben on the building's Web site.

Originally built in 1875, Hillcrest was acquired by the College in 1919 to be used for student housing. This function continued until the 1980s when faculty offices replaced student dorm rooms. Recognizing that the building underwent a historical transformation and served both students and faculty during the 20th century, the College moved to have the two parties coexist.

"Environmental studies, metaphorically speaking, was always a hub on campus," said Isham, "but now it's actually a hub. The purpose of a building is to bring people together, and Hillcrest has further enhanced a good thing. It may be small, but should not be underestimated. It has brought us all together."

Once spread out all over campus, Hillcrest has centralized the Environmental Studies program by putting faculty, the Dean of Environmental Affairs, staff of the College's Sustainability Integration Office and the Office for Community Based Environmental Studies under one roof - a roof that includes a seven kilowatt bank of solar panels, which provide upwards of 20 percent of the power used in the building.

In addition to solar panels, the building satisfied 52 of the possible 69 elements of LEED, the third-party certification system. Hillcrest also received a perfect score in the "Energy & Atmosphere" category, which has been the primary goal of on-campus construction projects, according to Gleason. 50 percent of the purchased electricity comes from "cow power" - electricity generated by burning methane captured from decomposing manure at Vermont dairy farms. Builders also used thorough blower tests to identified invisible air leaks through the high-efficiency windows and doors. Insulating foam and vapor seals further contribute to energy conservation in the building, which will be heated by the biomass powered central steam plant beginning Dec. 1.

Inside, the building uses low water-use fixtures, including waterless urinals and a low-flow showerhead - an amenity meant to encourage bike travel. Strategic window placements maximize passive solar heating and cooling. When natural weather conditions are not enough, the building's temperature is monitored and controlled through a central energy management system.

Just as construction has been "performed with sustainability goals in mind" over the past several years, so too will projects of the future, according to Gleason.

"With each subsequent project, the College has improved on its past performance so that previous leading edge practices become a basis for new standards," Gleason wrote in an e-mail.

The Donald E. Axinn '51 Center for Literary and Cultural Studies at Starr Library is another example of an environmentally conscious adaptive reuse construction project. With the cost of building from scratch, the College will likely look for ways to use its current spaces in new ways.

"You have to look at what you have and what you are trying to do," said Axinn Project Manager Tim McGinn. "It is difficult to justify tearing down current square footage because of the cost." This, too, was the model for restoring the nearly century-old Starr Library.

"The [Abernathy] Reading Room was a grand space, and important for the College to maintain," said McGinn. Preserving history was a hallmark for the project as the design and construction teams found ways to maximize the energy management system, especially by using sunlight and local materials.

Both Hillcrest and the Axinn Center highlight the larger effort on the College's part to prioritize "green building" as it moves forward with construction projects. But administrators are not the only ones concerned with environmentally sustainable building. Within the environmental science major, architecture is the fastest-growing focus, according to Isham. Students, as well as the College, seem to be simultaneously recognizing the importance of the built environment and implementing it in both academia and on-campus construction.