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Trades, Barton Malow help Whitmore Lake high school go green

Date Posted: March 18 2005

WHITMORE LAKE - One of the foremost applications in Michigan for "building green" is shaping up in the form of this city's new high school.

A growing student population in this Washtenaw County community has led to the ongoing construction of a new $26 million, 155,000 square-foot Whitmore Lake High School.

The project began in late July and is expected to wrap up in early June, 2006. While not a mammoth, big-foot high school like those recently built in Holt (350,000 square-feet), or Saline (510,000 square feet), the new Whitmore Lake High School is sized for the community's needs, with room for expansion.

But the new school is plenty big on environmentally friendly construction concepts and technologies, which will set it apart from the vast majority of other buildings in Michigan.

"Initially, there is probably a bit of a higher cost factor," said Project Manager Arlene Samuel of construction manager Barton-Malow. "But there are a number of ways owners can get those higher costs back through the LEED system. I see LEED as being mandated for a lot of buildings in the future."

LEED refers to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, a certification provided by the United States Green Building Council. Currently there are only 188 buildings in the nation that have achieved LEED certification, and this high school would be one of the first in Michigan to get the designation.

During the construction process, some of the stringent LEED requirements include sorting waste into designated recycling dumpsters that hold steel, wood and glass. Super-efficient expanding foam insulation is used in the walls. There are specific wastewater requirements, including the installation of waterless urinals (they apparently work pretty well in terms of keeping down smells). The design also has to include an increased amount of glass on the south and west sides of the school to maximize heat gain in the winter, as well as provide natural lighting.

A 590-foot by 490-foot geothermal field of tubes and pipes buried near the school building will transfer heat from the ground to the high school through heat pumps, a system which is expected to save the school district a significant amount of utility dollars.

And, a 14-foot deep pond on the site will be used for site rain collection and as a supply of water for fire suppression.

Plans also call for the installation of additional bicycle racks and indoor areas for students to change clothes, to encourage pedal-powered transportation.

Samuel said she underwent an intensive course and difficult test to be LEED-accredited for construction projects, which helps her explain and enforce the standards with contractors.

"It's a fabulous system," she said. "You can see how much waste there is on a job site, and how easy it is to recycle. I give credit to the school district for thinking ahead. I think it shows pride in the building and it will have some long-term cost advantages."

Taryn Holowka, communications coordinator for the Green Building Council, said there are 1,800 projects "in the pipeline" for LEED certification.

"The biggest advantage in LEED construction for those who look at the bottom line, is utility savings," she said. "Building owners can save 20-50 percent on utility bills. But there are also 'soft costs,' - in the form of reduced absenteeism and increased productivity because of a building's better air quality and increased natural light."

She said extra costs associated with building green are anywhere from 0-7 percent, depending on the how stringent a LEED standard is used. There are four levels.

The Whitmore Lake project, like numerous others this winter in Michigan, has been beset by wet weather and damp ground. Still, Samuel said, structural steel arrived project quickly and in only six months the entire shell of the building was nearly complete.

Between 40-55 construction workers are on the job, with 10-15 more expected at peak employment. "This has not been a good winter to build," Samuel said. "Considering the conditions with the weather and the ground, the tradespeople have been doing a very good job."

The high school will include: 15 classrooms, two science labs and four science lecture rooms, a media center, a cafetorium and stage, a two-court gymnasium, an elevated walking/running track and a six-lane pool. A new football stadium and athletic fields will also be built on the site.


AN EXPANSE OF WINDOWS in a stairwell at Whitmore Lake High School is installed by Rick Almanza and Gary Clarkson of Glaziers & Glassworkers Local 357 and Madison Hts. Glass.
At the front of the school are Iron Workers Local 25 members Keith Downey (on the iron) and Tony Hernandez (near the rig), working for Sova.