Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill Elementary Achieves LEED Silver Certification

Omaha Public Schools, Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill Elementary and RDG Planning & Design, announce the Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill Elementary has been awarded LEED Silver Certification established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). This project is the first Educare facility in the nation and the first OPS-affiliated facility to be rewarded with a LEED standard for highly sustainable design and construction.

Sponsored by the Omaha Public Schools and the Buffett Early Childhood Fund, Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill Elementary facility serves 200 children and their families. The facility offers a state-of-the-art early childhood education program for economically disadvantaged children from birth to age five as well as early childhood resources for parents and the Omaha Community. Completed in 2009, the facility, having achieved LEED Silver Certification, can help create awareness and teach the community to incorporate money-saving techniques into their own homes through the various examples of sustainable strategies used throughout the building.
From natural light and indoor air quality to environmentally responsible materials, this facility incorporates design decisions that benefit children and staff. Providing a healthy and sustainable learning environment gives resident children and their parents a greater awareness of environmental responsibility.

To provide a healthy environment and aid in the process of teaching children at a young age about sustainable practices, RDG used several key elements throughout the project to enhance the buildings sustainability standards. Items such as a highly effective building envelope that serves as a thermal blanket, covering the building to keep heating and air conditioning costs to a minimum, as well as the installation of efficient heating and air units designed to further reduce the energy use in the building, said Brian Spencer, Architect for RDG Planning & Design.

Use of recyclable materials was another element that helped the building achieve LEED Silver Certification. The steel frame of the building is composed of over 95% recycled steel, and many of the playground components contain post-consumer recycled plastic materials such as milk jugs, plastic bags, etc, said Spencer. Other products containing recycled materials are carpet and drywall that were used within the building. In addition, concrete and asphalt removed as waste from area construction sites was ground and incorporated to help form the parking lot and sidewalks for the facility.

The project used locally-manufactured materials wherever possible to contribute to sustainability goals as well as gain additional cost savings for the Educare center. Bricks for the building came from within this region, and aggregate, used in the concrete and asphalt mixes was provided by area rock quarries. Concrete for the project also contained fly ash, a bi-product captured from the chimneys of coal-fired power plants. “Fly ash is a cost-effective resource when used in place of cement and improves concrete performance,” said Spencer, “Its use reduces the need for cement production – a major energy user and source of greenhouse gas emissions.”

Other items that contribute to the efficiency of the facility are: dual-flush valve toilets, low-flow sink faucets, individual temperature controls in the classrooms, and highly efficient lighting fixtures combined with ample day-lighting in the corridors. When planning this facility for children and considering their health, it was important to provide adequate circulation to improve air quality, and select materials that are free of harmful chemicals. “We used low VOC paints, flooring and other materials to minimize the emission of harmful fumes,” said Spencer. We also chose materials that are easy to maintain and keep clean, since children at this young age are so active, he said.

Sustainability, by the numbers:
-Energy Savings – Electricity 15.8%, Natural Gas 53.4% over comparable building based on cost
-Water Savings – 36.7% over the average code compliant building based on gallons used
-Recycled materials – 25% of building materials
-Regional materials – 32% of building materials from regional sources

The LEED plaque representing the certification of this facility will be presented to the OPS Board of Education during the June board meeting on June 7th.

Building on the success of the Educare of Omaha at Indian Hill Elementary facility, RDG is working with Omaha Public Schools to incorporate sustainable design principles into other current OPS projects. The addition to North Omaha High School Science Center is in its final stages of construction to be ready for students next fall. Also in the design phase is a new elementary school near 42nd & V Streets with construction anticipated to begin in October of this year. Both projects are on track to achieve LEED certification through the USGBC.