St. Thomas has received another award for Tommie East’s sustainable building design.
The university has been named a 2021 USGBC Regional Leadership Award recipient by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). St. Thomas joins an impressive slate of awardees that include organizations, projects and individuals around the world who are using green building and sustainable practices to improve the quality of life for those around them. This year’s recipients were recognized at the USGBC Leadership Awards Ceremony June 10 during the inaugural USGBC Live virtual event.
“Following a difficult year, it is truly inspiring to recognize our green building leaders that have continued their commitment to green building and sustainable communities while adapting to the changing environments around us,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO, USGBC. “The 2021 USGBC Leadership Award awardees have improved our world through the power of green building and it is their contributions and work that have helped our communities stay safe and healthy.”
Tommie East is the first midrise residential building in the Midwest to achieve the LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) v4 Platinum certification for new construction. It’s also the sixth building in its category in the country – and seventh in the world – to achieve the rating.
Several features of Tommie East’s sustainable building design include:
- 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
- Secure, indoor bike parking
- An underground rainwater infiltration system
- Over 8,000 square feet of vegetated roof area
- Carpet made from recycled content
“We are grateful to the U.S. Green Building Council for this award,” said Amir Nadav, assistant director of campus sustainability at the University of St. Thomas. “By modeling best practices in sustainable design, the Tommie East Residence Hall reduces operational expenses while enhancing the student experience at St. Thomas. The building’s LEED Platinum certification reflects the university’s commitment to preparing our students to be sustainability leaders and to doing our part to create a better world for present and future generations. ”
The 2021 USGBC Leadership Award recipients represent some of the best of USGBC’s 10,000 member organizations, a network of committed professionals with more than 106,000 LEED commercial projects in more than 180 countries and territories around the world. The efforts of the awardees stand out as exceptional examples of sustainability leadership among a strong and growing network of projects, companies and individuals. For more information about the awards ceremony, visit USGBC Live.
