Greek Village receives LEED Gold certification

The Greek Village is the sixth LEED-certified structure at BGSU

By Bob Cunningham  

The color green is usually associated with Earth Week, but sometimes green is gold.  

Bowling Green State University learned during Earth Week that the Greek Village, a $32.7 million Greek housing project which opened at the beginning of Fall 2016, received the LEED for Homes Gold certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is a rating system devised by the council to evaluate the environmental performance of a building and encourage market transformation toward sustainable design.

The Greek Village is the sixth LEED-certified structure at the University. Each of the 33 residences was constructed using sustainable construction practices and materials, with the intention of operating efficiently.  

“We are so proud of this significant designation for our new Greek Village and are so pleased that our students have access to facilities that are state-of-the-art and environmentally friendly"

“We are so proud of this significant designation for our new Greek Village and are so pleased that our students have access to facilities that are state-of-the-art and environmentally friendly," BGSU President Mary Ellen Mazey said.

The efficiency credits that helped the Greek Village earn LEED Gold include:

• The use of low-volatile-organic-compound (VOC) emission paints, adhesives and coatings.
• Construction Waste Management records indicating that the project diverted more than 75 percent of construction waste from a landfill to a recycling or reuse center. The Greek Housing projects diverted approximately 605 cubic yards of material.
• The installation and use of high-efficiency toilets and showerheads, along with very high-efficient lavatory faucets.
• The complete air infiltration sealing with a continuous air barrier: Each Greek Chapter is sealed separately from the other adjacent chapters.
• All the wall assemblies and trusses were delivered to the site as prefabricated panels.
• Utilization of a heat-recovery ventilator system.
• The use of exhaust fans with occupancy sensors for each unit.

For each new University construction project, the target is a minimum of LEED Silver certification, according to Michael Schuessler, senior project manager in the BGSU Office of Design and Construction. He said through efforts by the construction team, both architects and contractors, BGSU was able to achieve enough credits for the LEED Gold certification of the Greek Village.   

“The design team, the contractors and the University all worked together to exceed our goal,” Schuessler said. “We had no idea we were going to get Gold. We knew we were solid in Silver, but it was a surprise when we were notified we reached the level of Gold for LEED for Homes. That just goes to show you that working together and having a LEED expert on the team that guides you through the process does pay dividends.”