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...deal with aging buildings, Henry says.
And a major operating cost is energy, so high-efficiency mechanical systems are increasingly important, especially in a state like Texas, where air-conditioning runs almost year-round.
Checking lifetime costs comes in addition to checking up-front costs, which sometimes are higher with sustainable building but can be recovered with later savings.
Two Texas schools designed by SHW Group, however, came in with initial costs that were below standard estimates.
One is West Brazos Junior High School in Brazoria, where building costs were 18% less than the average junior high in the region.
It was the Lone Star State’s first public junior high to earn LEED certification.
“Our goal was to demonstrate that green schools were achievable without spending extra money in the process,” says Martha Buckner, assistant superintendent of the Columbia Brazoria Independent School District. “The key was smarter choices, not more money.”
The school, completed in 2007, is reporting higher standardized test scores, a 31% drop in potable water consumption and reduced cooling demand thanks to low-emittance (low-E) glazing and exterior shading.
A bonus: The recycling program started in the school has spread into the community, and green cleaning supplies used in the school are now being used in all schools in the district, Henry says.
Gloria Marshall Elementary School, under design for Spring ISD in Houston, is coming in at $1 million under the $16.5 million budget, she says.
Located on a heavily wooded site in a residential community, it will be two stories, reducing the building footprint and saving trees.
All rooms will have natural daylight, and energy savings is projected at 25%.
It will be the first in the Houston to rely on a geothermal system for heating and cooling and will have an eco-farm in the front courtyard. A rainwater cistern will feed ponds in the eco-farm – flowing first through a clear tube in the science lab – and a rainwater catchment system will provide water to flush toilets.
Purcell Construction of Humble, started construction in late April; completion is scheduled for August 2010.
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