TARC Earns LEED Gold for Maintenance Facility
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TARC's new maintenance facility. (Courtesy TARC)
It’s a rather utilitarian building tucked away, out of site behind the grand Union Station at Tenth Street and Broadway, but TARC‘s new maintenance building has earned a LEED Gold certification for sustainability from the US Green Building Council. Now when you’re riding one of the greenest forms of transportation, you can rest assured that your bus has been cleaned in an equally green building.
Green roof at TARC's new maintenance facility. (Courtesy TARC)
Construction on the 17,700 square foot structure began in 2009 and wrapped up last winter. Luckett & Farley designed the building to include a green roof with solar cells to power lights and skylights to add natural lighting. Rainwater is first slowed down by the green roof and then stored in retention tanks to keep stormwater out of the sewers. Little details, like operable windows, also contributed to the building’s green status.
The $4.5 million facility was paid for by recovery (ARRA) funds from the federal government. It’s expected to save TARC about 30 percent on energy costs compared to a similar conventional building. Besides cleaning, the building also houses some electronics repair facilities and training areas for TARC employees. A public dedication and open house will be held sometime this fall.
Nina
August 26th, 2011
2:31 pm
Go, TARC. A silver was expected so this gold is a big deal. Congratulations!
Phil
August 29th, 2011
12:11 pm
TARC’s press release on its new maintenance and training annex,
http://www.ridetarc.org/news.asp?ArticleID=512
Mark prussian
September 5th, 2011
8:04 am
The Leeds Cert is good, but doesn’t TARC have an obligation to maintain all of its facilities? There is a TARC bus junkyard at Broadway approx near 20th St (don’t remember exact corner) which is a neighborhood blight. Shameful mess.