Holaday-Parks Takes on the Living Building Challenge
Challenge Accepted!
When the City of Seattle set its sights on becoming a carbon-neutral community by 2050—Holaday-Parks knew they would be busy.
“Opportunities for improved efficiencies are endless,” explains Dan Connell, Managing Principal at Holaday-Parks. “Heating, cooling, and ventilation are by far the largest energy users—and the biggest expense in an operational budget. Which is the reason our teams are focused on pushing the energy efficiency boundaries with green, innovative system designs.”
Fast Forward to 2022
Holaday-Parks was recently selected to help achieve the Petal Certification for a high-rise commercial office project in Seattle under the Living Building Challenge (LBC). The building includes 15 levels of large floor plates with 13ft ceilings, floor-to-ceiling windows, a 16th-floor rooftop terrace, 14,500sf of ground-floor retail space, two levels of below-grade parking, and 1,500sf of ground-level bike storage. The task is to make this the greenest building of its kind—challenge accepted!
Currently, this project is on track to exceed the LBC standards by:
· Generating 105% of the energy it needs.
· Using 35% less energy than a typical office building of its kind.
· Saving and treating 100% of captured rainwater for onsite non-potable use.
More about the Living Building Challenge (LBC):
The International Living Future Institute (ILFI) is the organization that administers the challenge and compares a Living Building to a flower—rooted in place, making its energy and water and demonstrating beauty. LBC uses a flower to symbolize efficiency and organizes the program into "petals." There are seven performance areas or petals—Place, Water, Energy, Health, Beauty, Materials, and Equity.
Achieving the LBC green certification isn’t just good for the world—it also brings REAL incentives to building owners like:
Granting up to 25% more floor area
Granting up to 30% more floor area if saving an unreinforced masonry structure
Granting 12.5ft of additional height for residential construction or 15ft of additional height for non-residential construction in zones with height limits of 85ft or less
Granting 25ft of additional height for residential construction or 30ft of additional height for non-residential construction in zones with height limits greater than 85ft
Also… additional design departures for the pilot programs are specified in Seattle Municipal Code 23.41.012D.
Holaday-Parks Supporting LBC
To achieve Petal Certification for the Seattle high-rise commercial office building, Holaday-Parks was tasked to achieve a net-positive energy balance.
“Our team worked from the very early stages prioritizing the impact of the mechanical systems from both a social and environmental perspective,” describes Michael Cook P.E., Engineering Manager. “In order to hit a net-positive energy balance, our team focused on the need for innovative systems—but we couldn’t lose sight of keeping the occupants comfortable and happy.”
Project Contributions
Holaday-Parks is providing sanitary wastewater, domestic cold water, and rainwater calculations to assist the design team’s effort to determine annual water consumption and rainwater storage for the building. The systems installed include Rainwater collection and reuse system, a vacuum waste system, and a gray-water reuse system. HP self-performed the following: Engineer-of-Record, Constructability Review, Value-Engineering, BIM, MEP Coordination, HVAC/Plumbing/Piping Fabrication and Installation, Building Controls, and Commissioning.
Holaday-Parks is one of the largest full-service mechanical contractors in Washington and Alaska. We design, build, enhance, and service high-quality building solutions that are SMART—Sustainable, Measurable, Affordable, Reliable, and Timely. To learn more about how we can help with your next project, contact us HERE