A new residence hall at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., has received LEED Platinum certification for its environmentally friendly design and construction.
The university says that Tommie East Residence Hall, a five-story, 139,300-square-foot facility that can house up to 260 students, opened in fall 2020.
Platinum is the highest level of certification awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council.
“We, at St. Thomas, know our facilities are world class, but it is not every day that the most widely used green building rating system in the world recognizes you as one of the best,” says President Julie Sullivan.
Among the residence hall's sustainable elements:
- Energy efficiency above industry standards
- The use of electric vehicle charging stations
- Collection of compostable waste
- An irrigation metering system
- High-efficiency appliances and low-flow water fixtures
- Access to green spaces
- Access to bicycle and public transit
- An underground rainwater infiltration system
- More than 8,000 square feet of vegetated roof area
- Carpet made from recycled content
One of the significant construction challenges was that the pandemic required workers to safely distance as they completed tasks in small spaces. This required altering schedules to limit the number of workers on site. Despite this obstacle, the residence hall was finished in time for students to move in by fall 2020.
Designing new buildings for LEED certification is part of the university’s larger plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035.
As part of its larger sustainability initiative, the university is designing all new buildings larger than 25,000 square feet to a minimum of LEED Silver standards. It also calls for integrating sustainability into its residence halls by reducing waste, conserving energy and water, and measuring its progress.
The architect is ESG Architecture & Design, and the builder is Ryan Companies.
