School Goes Green - Firm to Design 'Greenest' School

A new high school in New Mexico will attempt to be the first public school in the U.S. with a Platinum LEED Rating.

Sargert Design Associates, Inc. (SDA) is under contract to design the new Moreno Valley High School (MVHS), which the firm claims will be the most environmentally sensitive high school in the United States.

The school is scheduled to break ground in Fall 2005, and upon completion will serve a total of 300 students from the surrounding area and around the world. This chartered institution is the only public high school located within Moreno Valley, and serves approximately 100 students.

Presently, the school is situated in six cramped modulars on 22 acres of land donated to the community by Angel Fire Resort. SDA has officially registered the MVHS project with the USGBC-LEED Program, with the anticipation that it will successfully achieve a "Platinum Rating". If this rating is awarded, the Angel Fire project will garner the highest green-build environmental rating awarded any public school project in the United States as well as the world.

SDA's master plan will incorporate the latest energy-saving technologies, materials, and innovative designs to generate long-term cost savings over the life of the building, while at the same time adding an additional 40,000-sq-ft of floor space over previously submitted, non-sustainable plans. Overall, the footprint of the new facility will be a total of 100,000-sq-ft. According to this plan, Angel Fire students will also participate in the successful design and environmentally friendly operation of the school.

Phase I construction costs for the new school building project is estimated at $20 million.

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