The first LEED Platinum Office in the City of Cincinnati!

May 5, 2011 – Lohre & Assoc., Inc., Marketing Communications, Green Cincinnati® Education Advocacy Awarded LEED® Platinum Green Building Certification. Marks the first marketing communications office worldwide to receive the Certification. The Certification is LEED® Platinum Commercial Interiors v3 2009 by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The 800-sq.-ft. space located in the Schickel Design Building in historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood is believed to be the first office of its kind to receive the Certification. LEED is the USGBC’s leading rating system for designing and constructing the world’s greenest, most energy efficient, and high-performing buildings. Slide show.

An award ceremony will be held on Fountain Square June 6, 2011 at 11:30 a.m. by Council Member Laure Quinlivan and USGBC Cincinnati Regional Chapter Executive Director Myron Rivers. Reception at the office after. Please RSVP 513-26-9025, chuck.lohre@greencincy.wpmudev.host if you plan to attend.

Green Cincinnati promotes Green Building and provides the public with resources needed to advocate for the USGBC LEED Certification process through LEED AP services, seminars, local tours and classes.

Explains Lohre & Assoc.’s President Chuck Lohre, “My lifelong love of architecture, particularly Frank Lloyd Wright’s concept of ‘organic’ architecture led me to pursue what that might look like today had Wright continued to practice.” Lohre says, “That led to me to the U.S. Green Building Council and its modern take on sustainable ‘organic’ architecture.” (In 2003 Chuck Lohre and his wife purchased the Boulter House designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.)

Taking the theoretical one step further, Lohre continues, “I attempted to transform office space in a 160-year-old building into a LEED Platinum project.” Over the past thee years, many of Lohre’s students studying for LEED AP accreditation helped to achieve the LEED certification. Located on West 14th Street near Music Hall and Washington Park, the office space is notable for reduced energy, lighting, water and material use as well as incorporating a variety of other sustainable strategies.

“The green building movement offers an unprecedented opportunity to respond to the most important challenges of our time, including global climate change, dependence on non-sustainable and expensive sources of energy and threats to human health,” says Rick Fedrizzi, USGBC’s president, CEO and founding chair. “The work of innovative building projects such as Lohre’s Green Cincinnati Education Advocacy is a fundamental driving force in the green building movement.”

LEED certification of Lohre & Assoc., Inc.’s Green Cincinnati Education Advocacy office was based on a number of green design and construction features that positively impact the project itself and the broader community.

Highlights include:

Community connectivity and public transportation credits were earned thanks to the office’s location in Over-the-Rhine. Credits were earned for encouraging bicycle use and offering preferred car and van pool vehicle parking.

Drought-resistant flowers, native trees and sedum planted to reduce the heat island effect. In combination with the 50-percent open-area pavers and a rain barrel, the project obtained the credit for no potable water use for landscaping.

Water-saving features reduce consumption by 30 percent. A modified single-flush toilet with a dual flush attachment and an added hand-washing basin over the water closet is what it took. A 1.25 gpm showerhead along with a 1.5 gpm kitchen sink aerator rounded out the effort.

Low-wattage lighting and Energy Star office equipment dramatically reduce energy consumption. All incandescent bulbs were replaced with CFLs and LEDs. Meanwhile, the wood pellet stove is considered renewable energy because the pellets are made of sawdust waste. An Energy Star Cannon copier and Mac computers, contributed to the 91-percent Energy Star plug loads. Over 92-percent occupancy sensors with daylight cut offs were installed.

The project includes 100-percent reused furniture, 100-percent existing interior walls and new-salvaged carpet squares from Building Value, a local building material reuse center. A total of 11 lbs. of carpet scraps was diverted from a landfill and were recycled by Recovery 1, Inc., Tacoma, Wash.

Indoor air quality was improved with a MERV 13 air filter, a CO2 sensor, low-VOC shellac to paint the FSC plywood sink cover and walk off mats keep dirt from ever entering the office.

“Anyone interested in Green Building, the USGBC as well as Green Cincinnati Education Advocacy’s office can visit their booth #312 at Greening the Heartland, USGBC Green Building Conference June 22-24, 2011 at Cincinnati Duke Energy Convention Center,” Lohre explains. (www.greeningtheheartland.org)

About Lohre & Assoc., Inc., Marketing Communications & Green Cincinnati Education Advocacy:
The company’s goal is to help promote Green Building and provide the public with the resources needed to advocate for the USGBC LEED Certification process. Through LEED AP documentation services, seminars, tours, classes and one-on-one mentoring – green thinkers, designers, visionaries, activists, home owners, educators, students, contractors and suppliers are encouraged to learn more about the USGBC methods and practices in designing and constructing energy efficient and sustainable structures for the benefit of their family and the world.

About the U.S. Green Building Council:
The U.S. Green Building Council is a nonprofit membership organization whose vision is a sustainable built environment within a generation. Its membership includes corporations, builders, universities, government agencies, and other nonprofit organizations. LEED verifies environmental performance, occupant health and financial return. LEED was established for market leaders to design & construct buildings that protect and save precious resources while also making good economic sense.

Since UGSBC’s founding in 1993, the Council has grown to more than 17,000 member companies and organizations, a comprehensive family of LEED® green building rating systems, an expansive educational offering, the industry’s popular Greenbuild International Conference and Expo (www.greenbuildexpo.org), and a network of 78 local chapters, affiliates, and organizing groups. For more information, visit www.usgbc.org.

About LEED®

The LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System™ is a feature-oriented rating system that awards buildings points for satisfying specified green building criteria. The six major environmental categories of review include: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality and Innovation and Design. Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum levels of LEED green building certification are awarded based on the total number of points earned within each LEED category. LEED can be applied to all building types including new construction, commercial interiors, core & shell developments, existing buildings, homes, neighborhood developments, schools and retail facilities. The City of Cincinnati offers tax abatements for LEED projects. LEED has also been adopted by the City of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Public Schools and Ohio educational projects, federal buildings nationwide, and private companies such as PNC Bank, IKEA, and P&G. The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, University of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Civic Garden Center are also committed to LEED Certification. For more information, visit www.usgbc.org/LEED.

What is a Green Office? – April 14, 2011 Green Office makeover presentation. Please join us for a report on the office’s progress, the USGBC’s questions about our project and the steps we took to correct our documentation. Program will start with a OTR Leads Lunch by the OTR Chamber at 1401 Race St. at 11:30 p.m. which ends at 1 p.m. We’ll then go to the office and have the review until 1:30 p.m. Please RSVP for the lunch and/or programs. There is no charge for the events.

Green Cincinnati’s LEED office project’s goal is to be a learning tool for educating the public about sustainable architecture. You will find all of the USGBC documentation available on these pages for the credits listed. If you have any questions or would like to visit the office please contact us. Thanks for your interest. Page is under construction, contact us if you have a specific question.

Category, #, Credit Name
PI    f1            Minimum Program Requirements
PI    f2            Project Summary Details
PI    f3            Occupant and Usage Data
PI    f4            Schedule and Overview Documents
PI    f5            Previously LEED Certified Details
SS    c1            Site Selection
SS    c2            Development Density and Community Connectivity
SS    c3.1            Alternative Transportation-Public Transportation
SS    c3.2            Alternative Transportation-Bicycle …
SS    c3.3            Alternative Transportation-Parking …
WE    p1            Water Use Reduction-20% Reduction
WE    c1            Water Use Reduction
EA    p1            Fundamental Commissioning of the Building Energy Systems
EA    p2            Minimum Energy Performance
EA    p3            Fundamental Refrigerant Management
EA    c1.1            Optimize Energy Performance-Lighting Design
EA    c1.2            Optimize Energy Performance-Lighting Control
EA    c1.3            Optimize Energy Performance-HVAC
EA    c1.4            Optimize Energy Performance-Equipment
EA    c2            Enhanced Commissioning
EA    c3            Measurement and Verification of Energy Saving Methods
EA    c4            Green Power
MR    p1            Storage and Collection of Recyclables
MR    c1.1            Tenant Space-Long-Term Commitment
MR    c1.2            Building Reuse
MR    c2            Construction Waste Management: Recovery 1 carpet recycling
MR    c3.1            Materials Reuse: Building Value building materials reuse
MR    c3.2            Materials Reuse – Furniture
MR    c4            Recycled Content
MR    c5            Regional Materials
MR    c6            Rapidly Renewable Materials
MR    c7            Certified Wood
IEQ    p1            Minimum Indoor Air Quality Performance
IEQ    p2            Environmental Tobacco Smoke (ETS) Control
IEQ    c1            Outdoor Air Delivery Monitoring
IEQ    c2            Increased Ventilation
IEQ    c3.1            Construction IAQ Management Plan-During Construction
IEQ    c3.2            Construction IAQ Management Plan-Before Occupancy
IEQ    c4.1            Low-Emitting Materials-Adhesives and Sealers
IEQ    c4.2            Low-Emitting Materials-Paints and Coatings
IEQ    c4.3            Low-Emitting Materials-Flooring Systems
IEQ    c4.4            Low-Emitting Materials-Composite Wood
IEQ    c4.5            Low-Emitting Materials-Systems Furniture
IEQ    c5            Indoor Chemical and Pollutant Source
IEQ    c6.1            Controllability of Systems-Lighting
IEQ    c6.2            Controllability of Systems-Thermal
IEQ    c7.1            Thermal Comfort-Design
IEQ    c7.2            Thermal Comfort-Verification
IEQ    c8.1            Daylight and Views-Daylight
IEQ    c8.2            Daylight and Views-Views for Seated Occupants
ID    c1.1            MRc2 Construction Waste Management
ID    c1.2            Innovation in Design Regional Materials
ID    c1.3            Innovation in Design Lighting Power
ID    c1.4            Innovation in Design Green Cleaning
ID    c1.5            Innovation in Design Education
ID    c2            LEED® Accredited Professional

(12-2-19 301 redirect from lohre.com)