Vertegy Helps Build Environmentally Friendly Addition at Southern Illinois College
BELLEVILLE, Ill. — Southern Illinois College in Belleville, Ill. will receive LEED certification for an addition to an existing building on campus with completion expected by winter 2012.
Vertegy, a sustainable design and construction-consulting firm of St. Louis, Mo. is working on the sustainable features of the new $19.1 million facility alongside St. Louis based architect, William B. Ittner. The project will also include MEP engineer Hurst-Rosche Engineers Inc. of Hillsboro, Ill., civil engineer Hoelscher Engineering of Fairview Heights, Ill., and general contractor Holland Construction of Swansea, Ill.
The new 74,000-square-foot project will be Vertegy’s seventh LEED certified school facility and will include a large elevated roof terrace, conference center, student lounge, classrooms, computer lab, data center, screening room, film production lab and administrative offices.
Southern Illinois College has three campuses in the Illinois communities of Granite City, Red Bud and the main campus in Belleville. The new building will be at the main campus and is the future home of Success Center that will offer students guidance and career counseling. The building is being funded by a Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity grant.
The building is expected to earn LEED Gold certification after its slated completion. Among the amenities of the building are its environmentally responsible features including, low-flow sinks and toilets, the use of native landscaping in the parking lot, low-VOC interior finishes and high efficiency lighting.
“Green-minded operators of educational facilities are becoming increasingly aware of all the benefits associated with sustainable design and, as a result, we have seen an increase in demand for LEED services when campus expansion is planned,” said Vertegy General Manager, Thomas Taylor. “Southwestern Illinois College is a perfect example.”
Along with the design and the features of the school, the project team will also work hard in order to keep the site environmentally friendly.
The team plans to recycle most of the construction waste at the campus and will also monitor the air quality during the project. A comprehensive storm-water collection and management plan will also be put into place for the new building.
The school is dedicated to the continuation of sustainable projects and wants to provide the students and community an environmentally responsible facility. Members of the school were just as determined to meet LEED standards as the architects on the project.
“As a founding member of the regional center for the Illinois Green Economy Network of community colleges, Southwestern Illinois College is dedicated to leading by example,” said SWIC President Georgia Costello, Ph.D. “To that end, last year we added an IGEN Sustainability Center at our main campus, and this sustainably-designed expansion of our Liberal Arts Building will serve as a community-wide template for us to follow in the future.”