Sustainability: An Evolution In Architecture
Great article on sustainable architecture and building in today’s San Francisco Chronicle. The future is clear: Green building is affecting commercial development. Just as homeowners are making eco-friendly changes when remodeling, rebuilding, all things Green continue to make inroads.
And Green building has changed the way that one San Francisco government building was redone: the Public Utilities Commission building, scheduled for completion in 2010.
In the words of John King, article author:
It’s conceived to be a showcase of “green” design, a departure from the bureaucratic norm. But by the time it opens in 2010, I’ll wager that even more adventurous buildings are close behind - because the world has changed, and architecture has to change with it.
San Francisco is also making changes to their public policy on new buildings:
On the public front, the supervisors are about to review an ordinance from Mayor Gavin Newsom requiring that by 2012 all new commercial buildings in San Francisco larger than 25,000 square feet must qualify for a Gold rating under the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards established by the U.S. Green Building Council.
Developing Green building plans and implementing energy-saving ideas has gone from hip to de riguer. Marrying efficiency and design with long-term environmental benefits is the outcome of a proactive professional from politician to architect:
…an architect today who designs a high-profile building has to take the environment into account - consuming as few materials as possible, paying attention to a structure’s carbon footprint. Not just because it’s the right thing to do but also because other architects and clients are making the effort.
More information here:
LEED
U.S. Green Building Council
Article: I just want to say one word to you: sustainability
