By: Amy Andrukonis

Sentry Staff Reporter

As the long construction project is drawing to a close, the school is reaching an exciting point in time. Finally, the community can sit back and celebrate the beautiful new building, admiring hard work that will pay off for years to come. This project was completed at the hands of skilled architects who paid attention to both the aesthetic appeal of the big picture and the practicality of the most minute environmentally sound details, and the U.S. Green Building Council has taken notice. The new building was awarded with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification.

The Council focuses on a wide range of factors when awarding this title, considering everything from the building’s water and energy efficiency to the innovation of its design. Special Projects Coordinator Dot Green provided further explanation of the award, and described the way architects masterfully meshed efficiency with visual appeal in creating the building over the years.

“[The architects] got points for the use of the courtyard with the open space, the shade in the summer, and the cistern. So they got points for assorted environmental things,” Green said.

The cistern collects rainwater and helps reuse this water throughout the building. The building is far more environmentally and economically efficient for this function. Green continued to describe other selling points of the new project.

“[There is] natural light in most of the classrooms, which is a really nice function of the design. Also, the courtyard was designed to be used during school, like for lunch, and there aren’t classrooms right up against it,” said Green.

This courtyard core, in combination with a lot of natural light, makes the new building especially unique. Because of the floor to ceiling windows surrounding the courtyard, most parts of the school can be seen from the main hallways. With this function, visibility has been maximized. Another special aspect of the school’s design is that while the building is impressive as a final product, the raw materials that went into its construction turned heads on their own. The construction team chose products that release far fewer damaging gases and chemicals than most building materials. In other words, the new building functions exceptionally as whole because it was built with exceptional parts.

This is truly a standout project, but other buildings in the area have also achieved this impressive award for their environmental excellence. The school building’s designers at HESS Construction also designed W-L’s building, which received Gold certification as well.

Environmentally friendly construction is becoming increasingly valued in today’s society, and Arlington county is proving to be a frontrunner in national and global efforts to pioneer safer and more efficient architecture. The community should be grateful to HESS construction for aiding in carving out such a responsible path for the county, and celebrate the privilege it is to live in such an environmentally progressive area.

Featured image by Chris Wiedemann