First LEED-CS Pre-Certified Building in New Mexico

7601 Jefferson NE, designed by Dekker/Perich/Sabatini, has achieved a Silver level of Pre-Certification based on its design strategies. It is the first building in New Mexico to be Pre-Certified under the LEED Core and Shell green building rating system. The design effort focused on incorporating meaningful sustainable features within the budget of a market-rate speculative office building.

The three-story, 80,000-sq.-ft. office building is the first building in the Jefferson Green Office Complex. The exterior includes large areas of curtainwall with high performance glazing and exterior shades for excellent daylighting, as well as operable windows and a highly reflective roof membrane that limits heat gain. The building's landscaping includes native and low-water use plant materials, with irrigation provided by Journal Center's gray water line. Features inside the building include water-conserving plumbing fixtures and an underfloor air distribution system that provides excellent ventilation and energy savings. The building is expected to use 30% less water and 45% less energy than a typical office building, and incorporates large quantities of recycled and regional materials as well as low-VOC interior materials. It is anticipated that at least 50% of the construction waste will be recycled.

The building is being developed by R. Davis Companies and constructed by Enterprise Builders for owner JCC-ONE, LLC. Bridgers + Paxton provided mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering in collaboration with contractors Yearout Mechanical and Chaparral Electric. Shell construction is scheduled to be completed in Spring 2006. A second building, also seeking certification under LEED-CS, will be completed in Fall 2006.

Groundbreaking For New Wastewater Treatment Facility

The Department of Public Utilities for Los Alamos County recently broke ground on the new Los Alamos Wastewater Treatment Facility. The Department qualified for a low interest loan from the New Mexico Environment Department to build the new wastewater treatment facility, which will replace the Bayo Wastewater Treatment
Facility currently located in Santa Fe County. The new facility has been designed to produce improved effluent and will be located within Los Alamos County.

The construction portion of the project is estimated to cost approximately $12 million and is slated to be complete and in operation by September 2007. The project was designed by Molzen Corbin and Associates, and Western Summit of New Mexico will serve as general contractor.

Advent Solar Breaks Ground at Mesa Del Sol

Advent Solar has broken ground on a research, development and manufacturing plant within the Mesa Del Sol master-planned development southeast of Albuquerque. The project is the first to break ground within the 9,000 acre site for developer Forest City Covington.

The one-story building will include 13,313-sq.-ft. of office space and 74,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space. The design allows for a second-story to be built at a later date.

The core and shell of the structure is scheduled to be completed by June 2006.

Klinger Constructors LLC is the general contractor. Design firm Dekker/ Perich/
Sabatini incorporated sustainable strategies into both the building shell and the tenant improvements. Features include rainwater capture for irrigation of the low-water use landscaping, use of many recycled and regionally manufactured products, and support of alternative transportation by providing parking for bicycles and hybrid vehicles. The tenant improvements will incorporate water-conserving fixtures and Advent's own photovoltaic panels.

Forest City Covington and Advent are pursuing LEED-CS certification for the building shell and LEED-CI certification for the tenant improvements.

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