Historic SF Building Achieves LEED Gold
SAN FRANCISCO — The historic 240 Stockton Street building in San Francisco was recently awarded LEED Gold in the Existing Buildings Operation and Maintenance (EBOM) category. Built in 1908, the building was already eco-friendly, as it was built with recycled aggregate concrete from the buildings destroyed in the 1906 earthquake.
The 47,000-square-foot, 10-story Art Deco-era building overlooks San Francisco’s famous Union Square, and features several windows to offer views and abundant natural light. It was awarded points for all 67 credits that were submitted for certification. Some of those sustainability features include its exemplary waste management system, the use of district steam to heat the building instead of natural glass, the use of high-efficiency water source heat pumps and AC units, and the fact that 96 percent of the janitorial materials and chemicals meet sustainable criteria.
Bently Holdings, the building owner, started working with Environmental Building Strategies on the project in July 2011. The renovation included the build-out of the eighth floor for the Bently Holdings corporate office, which will seek a LEED Platinum Commercial Interior (CI) certification. The tenant project includes 13 HVAC zones for optimized comfort control and a Quantam Lighting System to manage energy and customized lighting settings. Plus, all of the new wood material is FSC certified and was built in a shop run almost entirely on solar power.
To uphold its environmental integrity, Bently Holdings is requiring all tenant build-outs to seek LEED Silver CI certification or higher. In fact, a company policy for tenants leasing space at all their properties mandate all new tenant build-outs to be designed and built to LEED standards. Carpets, which take up some of the most space in landfills, must be made from recycled materials, as well as sheet rock, aluminum studs, nails and concrete. All demolition must be recycled as well.
The Bently Holdings sustainability commitment doesn’t just stop with building. The company is also involved in alternative energies, and all vehicles in the corporate fleet, as well as all generators, run on pure B100 biodiesel. Because it is difficult to become completely carbon neutral, the company also donates money to complete carbon neutrality to make up for any inefficiencies.