The General Services Administration has increased its sustainability requirements and now mandates LEED Gold for its projects.
Previously, the GSA required LEED Silver, but suggested projects aim for Gold certification under the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED program.
The change was announced by Lace Davis, director of the sustainability office for the GSA, at the Green Legal Matters conference in New Orleans on Oct. 15, and reported in the Washington Business Journal.
However, as noted in the article, the GSA hasn’t updated its material or Website to reflect the change, so questions about the new requirement remained.
BD+C contacted Don Horn, AIA, LEED AP, at the Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings, U.S. General Services Administration, and he confirmed the new LEED Gold requirement.
According to Horn: “GSA's Strategic Sustainability Performance Plan released the first week of September includes our new requirement to achieve LEED Gold. An internal memo from Les Shepherd and Bill Guerin, dated 9/24/10, also states the requirement is for new construction and substantial renovation projects.”
*Update* (Nov. 4, 2010)
The GSA has updated its materials and Website. The official announcement.
Related Stories
| Sep 23, 2011
Fire and hurricane rated glazed wall assemblies installed at multi-family residence in Florida
Fire and hurricane assemblies meet design and code requirements.
| Sep 23, 2011
ABI turns positive after four monthly declines
On the heels of a period of weakness in design activity, the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) took a sudden upturn in August.
| Sep 23, 2011
Under 40 Leadership Summit
Building Design+Construction’s Under 40 Leadership Summit takes place October 26-28, 2011 Hotel at the Monteleone in New Orleans. Discounted hotel rate deadline: October 2, 2011.
| Sep 20, 2011
Jeanne Gang wins MacArthur Fellowship
Jeanne Gang, a 2011 MacArthur Fellowship winner described by the foundation as "an architect challenging the aesthetic and technical possibilities of the art form in a wide range of structures."
| Sep 20, 2011
Francis Cauffman wins two IDA design awards
The PA/NJ/DE Chapter of the International Interior Design Association (IIDA) has presented the Francis Cauffman architecture firm with two awards: the Best Interior Design of 2011 for the W. L. Gore offices in Elkton, MD, and the President’s Choice Award for St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, NJ.
| Sep 20, 2011
PPG, Pleotint to co-market environmentally adaptive glazing technology with low-e glass
Laminated between two lites of glass, SRT interlayer may be used monolithically or within an insulating glass unit.
| Sep 19, 2011
Portland team hired as LEED and commissioning consultants for $5.5B downtown sustainable project in Qatar
The $5.5 billion sustainable downtown regeneration project underway by Msheireb Properties will transform a 76 acres site at the centre of Doha, Qatar’s capital city, recreating a way of living that is rooted in Qatari culture, attracting residents back to the city center and reversing the trend for decentralization.
| Sep 16, 2011
Chicago Architecture Foundation partners with seven renowned architects to re-imagine Chicago neighborhoods
Design on the Edge presents plans created by seven teams of nine Chicago-based architects to reimagine seven of the city’s neighborhoods to encourage street life, retail districts and dense housing around the existing “L” transit system.
