Williamsburg Library Awarded LEED Gold

Williamsburg Public Library Receives LEED Gold

Efficiency and performance don’t have to be cold and technical, the Williamsburg Public Library is cozy, warm and nicely scaled to it’s community, you’d never know that it is also the third library in the State of Iowa to achieve a Gold LEED designation.

The building operates at least 40% more efficiently than code requirements, consumes 30% less water and reduces electricity use through daylight harvesting. The $3.5 million, 17,825 square foot building was aiming for a LEED Silver, but was awarded a LEED Gold Monday, Feb. 4 – the second highest LEED certification attainable through the U.S. Green Building Council.

The design team incorporated an array of sustainable design strategies into the interior and exterior design, including:

• High performance, geothermal heating & cooling system
• Light sensors to dim or turn off lights during daylight hours of operations (Daylight Harvesting)
• Rooms equipped with Occupancy and Vacancy Sensors that turn off lights when rooms are unoccupied
• High performance, Structural Insulated Panels (SIPS) were used in the construction of the roof
• Fundamental Commissioning of all HVAC and Electrical Systems to insure peak performance and efficiency.
• Low VOC paints, adhesives, sealants that improve indoor air quality
• Building materials with a high level of recycled content
• Low-flow plumbing fixtures that conserve water consumption
• Recycled or salvaged at least 75% of all construction waste (landfill deferral)
• Landscaping design that specified native plantings to avoid the need to irrigate the site
• High performance, thermally-broken, insulated, low-E, exterior windows
• Design supports a building-wide recycling program