First project designed under green executive order takes gold rating

The first state building to be designed and built under an executive order on sustainability signed in 2000 by former Gov. John Kitzhaber has earned gold certification through the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED rating system.

Energy efficiency measures, which building operators say cut operating costs by about $36,000 annually, helped the $21.6 million North Mall Office Building on the Capitol Mall in Salem earn the gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating.

The 115,000-square-foot, L-shaped building opened in 2003 and houses three state agencies: the Oregon Water Resources Department, the Parks and Recreation Department and Oregon Housing and Community Service.

Among the energy-saving features used throughout the building are high-efficiency light fixtures incorporating ballasts and a sensor- operated dimming system that reduce lighting power density by about 40 percent, according to the building's designer, Portland-based Yost Grube Hall Architecture.

The low voltage of the lighting system is offset in part through a daylighting effort that uses a shallow-depth floor plan, interior light shelves and glazing to bounce sunlight throughout the workspace.

Green building features added $93,045 to the building's $21.6 million cost, according to its owner, the Oregon Department of Administrative Services.

The building was designated a pilot project through Kitzhaber's executive order on sustainability, which expired in 2005 and not renewed by the state Legislature.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski signed a new executive order on sustainability last week at an award ceremony celebrating the work of Sustainable Northwest, an environmental advocacy group started by former Idaho Gov. Cecil D. Andrus.

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