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Share resources, build community
Why build an Olympic-sized swimming pool at your school if there’s already one in the neighborhood that students can use? Got a parking lot or a playing field that the nearby church or Little League could use when school’s not in session?
The purpose of this credit is to build community by sharing school resources with non-school groups, and vice versa. In addition, sharing spaces and services among schools and other community entities can cut down on construction costs and operating expenses, while helping everyone get access to resources they need.
Work your connections
The amount of work involved in this credit will be unique to each school and community. Schools will often informally share the use of various building spaces. If this is already happening at...
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25 Comments
Playgrounds
Would playgrounds be considered available for shared use in the community? They don't list playgounds, but they do list playing fields. This playground will be 100% ADA accessible which makes a very valuable community asset.
I woud think a playgound would work, but I can't confirm that from project experiennce. Have you gotten a ruling on this yet? I'm checking for other input.
Option 1 - Retain evidence of communication...?
In option 1, what does 'retain evidence of communication used to notify the public of shared space availability' mean? Do we need to have a sign? Is a sign up sheeet at the reception desk sufficient? Do they need to advertise in the local paper or on their website?
Dana, I think it may be different for different projecs, but whatever would establish a "paper trail" showing that the availability of the space was communicated. Minutes from a public meeting, a sign, a press release, a school newsletter or memo.... a sign-up sheet doesn't seem sufficient to me... if no one knows about it.
Option 1 - Can All Three(3) Spaces be Classrooms
The credit language for Option 1 states in part that...... "at least three(3) of the following spaces included in the school are accessible to and avilable for shared use by the general public: Auditorium;Gym;Cafertia/Cafetorium, one or more Classrooms; Playing Field."
Question: Does identifying three(3) separate Classrooms meet the requirements of SS10?
James - We've asked this question to GBCI before and they responded that the three spaces need to be different use types, not just three different classrooms.
Ben, I'm surprised, given that the credit language says "1 or more classrooms." I would have thought at least 2 classrooms would pass muster, based on that.
Joint Use "Letters of Intent" vs. "Contracts"
Will letters of Intent about the Joint-Use agreements satisfy the proof criteria for this credit? We have a school that will have Joint-Use agreements with a number of surrounding community venues, however these will only be executed by the School administration staff after they move into the facility. I am debating whether to defer this credit to the Construction Phase and hope that the administration executes the contracts quickly after school starts, or to submit it during the Design Submittal with the Letter of Intent as proof documentation.
Thank you.
I have seen letters used as documentation on other projects. I would think this would be approved; however, only GBCI knows for sure!
meet options 1,2 and 3 - innovation in design point?
I'm working on a High School project that meets all three options in SSc10. Do you think I would be eligible to apply for an Innovation and Design point as well as an exemplary point for complying with all three options?
Thanks,
Nicole
No, I don't think so. If a credit is eligible for the EP point with a certain higher-than-normal threshold, than surpassing that threshold even further doesn't open up the option for an additional innovation point through IDc1.
Ok, thanks- however, I do see on the official form in the Summary section "The project team reserves one point in the Innovation and Design credit category for SSc10."
What would qualify for an ID point?
EP points are officially awarded through IDc1—that's what it's referring to.
Do existing spaces count?
Our LEED project is a new library on a high school campus registered under LEED for Schools v2.0.
Sustainable Sites Credit 10, Joint Use of Facilities, Option 1 – For this credit, we are planning to share a conference room that is in the new library, however, the remaining spaces contain valuable equipment so the school does not want to open up these other spaces. In order to meet the criteria for Option 1, we need three spaces. Are we able to share with the general public the existing Auditorium and Gymnasium on campus, even though it is not a part of the new Library facility seeking LEED?
Hi Denise,
I think it would need to be part of the LEED project in order to count towards this credit. Can you include parking spaces or playing fields as shared spaces? Those are usually pretty easy to make work.
Shannon
I would have guessed that you could make a case for it, as playing fields or parking lots, which are commonly used for this credit, might be on the same campus but not naturally within the LEED boundary. I would defer to Shannon's expertise, but if you really want to make a case for it in your submission because the other options are tougher, I might try for it.
I heard from USGBC that shared facilities used in SSc10 may lie outside of the LEED Project Boundary provided that the spaces are within the school’s larger campus boundary.
Good news for you and other projects! And I think this fits well with the credit intent. You don't have to include those spaces in other LEED credits.
Great news! Thanks for the update!
Hmm, that's helpful, Tristan. Can you share the USGBC contact or document that confirmed for you that shared facilities may lie outside of the LEED boundary as long as they are within the campus boundary? I ask because I am working on a LEED for Schools v2.0 project that was denied the credit with the following explanation:
"The project team has indicated that the shared use facilities are located within the existing school building and outside of the LEED project boundary for this project. Shared use facilities must be within the LEED project boundary to qualify for this credit. The documentation does not demonstrate credit compliance."
That struck me as unfair at the time since the existing school had never been a LEED project, meaning there was no opportunity for double-counting. And your news definitely makes me want to push for the credit. So where will I find the official ruling?
Kris, was this a recent ruling that you received? What is the number of the review team?
I would look first at the MPR supplemental guidance, page 14, which supports this kind of compliance, although not this specific situation.
The guidance I referenced earlier was in a direct communication from USGBC LEED staff, so unfortunately it's not "precedent setting."
No, it was some time ago. The final design review comments were received 10/06/2009. The review team was #15, and an individual who responded to our inquiry regarding another credit was Christine Frankovich
From the information you gave, I don't see the logic for the ruling. Given that the LEED reviewers are fallible, I think this is a case of an incorrect ruling. But again, they may be using logic that I'm not thinking of, and of course it's up to how they interpret it.
Do bathrooms have to be accessible to shared fields?
Under Option 1, one of our shared uses will be the playing fields. Does anyone know if we have to provide restroom access? The old school does have shared playing fields, but doesn't provide the restrooms.
"Has toilets available" is a requirement for option 1 and option 2, as shown in the credit language (see above).
It's interesting that the way this language is written, it seems to assume indoor space, even though playing fields are given as an example, so perhaps you could argue that the requirement shouldn't apply to fields.
On the other hand, restrooms are pretty important to people using playing fields, in my experience. I don't really see a way around this.
Thanks Tristan. It does seem like it would be a big help to have the restrooms available, and part of the spirit of the credit. Thanks for replying so quickly.
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