U.C. - Riverside Minds its Mess

HDR, architectural, engineering and consulting firm implements green design for UC-Riverside.

Growth equals more waste. Growth in science education equals more hazardous waste...

The University of California, Riverside (UCR) recently completed projections showing that the university could enroll up to 20,320 students by 2010 -- an increase from its present enrollment of 14,200.

College planners contemplate that the increase of academic programs in the sciences will impact their Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) facility in the functional areas of industrial hygiene, materials handling, training programs and administration.

UCR's new Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) facility, when completed, will manage all outgoing campus hazardous waste including future research facilities.

College planners worked with design consultants to provide the facility with adequate and appropriate space, cost-effective construction, and efficient green operations.

WHAT KNDS OF WASTE ARE PRODUCED AT COLLEGES?

UCR planners analyzed several campus waste management facilities--including those at the Iowa State University, UC San Diego, and UC Irvine and noted an overall change in the types and quantities of waste generated. Many universities handle three traditional types of waste: chemical, biomedical, and radiation.


"Hazardous Waste" makes it dangerous or potentially harmful to human health or the environment. Hazardous Waste can be liquids, solids, contained gases, or sludges.

Chemical waste refers to any chemical substances generated from university operations. Over the past few decades, chemical waste quantities and toxicity have remained relatively consistent.

Biomedical waste can be a health and safety hazard due to the nature of the waste and may contain disease causing germs. Due to the risk that these wastes present, disposal is regulated.

Radioactive waste contains or is contaminated with radioactivity. Campuses have decreased this waste due to different types of radioactive testing.

One of UCR's project goals is to provide a facility that serves as a model for environmental sustainability. The design team is charged with the task of planning this facility to achieve a LEED certified rating of at least 26 points up to 32 points, based on the current US Green Building Council LEED 2.1 Rating System. To achieve this design decisions affecting first cost vs. life-cycle costs, operational issues, materials selections, and maintenance must be considered.

Some of the green techniques incorporated in the design include:

• recyclable concrete masonry units (CMU) as building material.
  
• clerestory windows rather than skylights will be used to bring more natural light into the administrative center and decrease the need for artificial lighting during working hours.
  
• recycled materials, carpets and paints that are environment-friendly in restrooms and break rooms
  
• spill containment in the event of a hazardous event. Storage rooms floors will be sloped away from doors allowing for individual room containment. The loading dock area will self contain 20,000 gallons of runoff with a secondary naturally landscape depressed area in the front to hold an additional 30,000 gallons.
  

At UCR, accommodating waste quantity projection and the changing nature of waste, also accommodates community needs.

In addition to its sustainability, the new EH&S facility will contain a training center that can function as a stand alone 24/7 Command/ Emergency Operations Center in the event of a major disaster. This makes UCR an asset to both the University of California and the entire Riverside community.

SOURCE: www.hdrinc.com/

Planet Ocean...or Planet Earth? California acts

We call it planet earth but it's really planet ocean. Seventy one percent of the surface and 97 percent of the livable habitat of our amazing spherical space pool is saltwater. It's the crucible of life and source of delight for so many of us.

We all gain much from the ocean including transportation, recreation, trade, energy, protein, medicine and a sense of awe and wonder at being part of something so much larger than ourselves.

We feel a natural connection to the sea.

We all come from saltwater, both on an individual and evolutionary basis. Our bodies are 71 percent saltwater just like our planet. Our blood is salty as the sea. That may explain why I've always found it easier to sleep by the shore. The beat of the waves is like our mother's heartbeat.


...Hawaii
...Alaska
...and California:

California Rocks The Ocean

September 18 Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was joined by Washington and Oregon Governors Gregoire and Kulongoski to announce a regional compact to protect and restore the ocean.

"We now join forces to make sure we are doing everything in our power to maintain clean water and beaches along our coasts," Arnold declared. Not coincidentally, the governor is running for re-election in a state where people really do “vote the coast,” and are hugely upset over federal attempts to expand offshore oil drilling.

The 2006 California and World Ocean conference drew more than 1,000 people from the “blue movement,” including numerous Blue Frontier friends and advisors.

The conference was sponsored by the new California Ocean Protection Council. With hoped-for passage of Prop. 84, a state-wide initiative that could bring over $5 billion to the protection of watersheds, coasts and oceans, this was the kind of pragmatic, roll-up-your-pant-legs gathering that makes me believe there still might be time to create a bottom-up seaweed revolution before our public oceans become dead seas.

The conference's three days of panels and plenaries ranged from developing ocean research priorities to talks by reporters, pols and ocean explorers, reflections on the state of aquaculture, marine education, and California's maritime industries. That's where I learned it's the “Golden Age of Ports.” What with a $37 billion trade deficit with China—thanks, Wal-Mart—I can't wait for the “Platinum Age of Ports,” or however you might say that in Mandarin.

SOURCE: Read full article at: emagazine.com
By David Helvarg

DAVID HELVARG is the author of Blue Frontier: Dispatches from America’s Ocean Wilderness (W.H. Freeman) and The Ocean and Coastal Conservation Guide, 2005-2006: The Blue Movement Directory (Island Press).

Sprawl vs. Smart Growth...critical issues

I read an interesting interview by Grist.org with Anthony Flint, whose book This Land: The Battle Over Sprawl and the Future of America is a chronicle of the fledgling smart-growth movement and the challenges it faces from entrenched interests. For 20 years, Flint was a journalist covering urban development, planning, and transportation, primarily for The Boston Globe. Recently he left behind the daily beat: at the end of July, he will move to the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, a think tank devoted to land issues.

Over the years I've picked up a few insights as I have migrated across America.

• After WWII, the rural population migrated to the city.
  
• Cities are becoming more dense than is healthy for family life.
  
• Sprawl increases energy consumption, which increases pollution, etc.
  
• Homes have been eviscerated of almost all functionality except sleep....and that's even decreasing.
  
• We need new ways to cope with our escalating population!
  

Anthony's insights coincide with my own...so of course, I like what he has to say...following are excerpts from his interview. I encourage you to read the entire interview on GRIST.ORG.

CAUSES...before SOLUTIONS...

Urban Migration(s)

Dispersed suburban development, particularly housing, was encouraged by government policies: low-cost mortgages, the interstate highway system, and road-building practices generally. And zoning in this country, the rules that govern development, is geared toward promoting dispersed patterns.

The Automobile

The government saw suburban areas as a great hope for housing and organizing settlement. Energy was cheap, and the car was seen as a terrific mode of transportation (and it is in many ways).

Zoning

Zoning actually guarantees separated use and dispersal, because it came into being at a time when cities were messy, unhealthy, crowded places. Social reformers came in and said, hey, we need to make sure this slaughterhouse isn't near this tenement house. That encouraged this process of separating all the functions.

The Status Quo

There are homebuilders and road builders and others who have an obvious vested interest in the status quo. It's a very automated system. It's automatically financed; it's automatically ushered through because of the zoning in place around the country. It's a very easy thing to defend and maintain as the status quo, because it's very difficult to develop in any other way. You have lobbyists and the big homebuilders and others aligned with libertarian think tanks and critics of smart growth who are making sure, with op-ed essays and letters to the editor and blogs and the like, that this smart-growth stuff doesn't take hold and start to eat away at the bread and butter of the conventional development industry.

Affluence and Affordability

If you can afford a big house on a big piece of land, well, chances are you'll head out to get yourself that kind of property. What's driving sprawl, of course, is affordability -- the way home prices, at least at first, seem within reach.

SOLUTIONS

Even some of the big homebuilders whose bread and butter has been single-family subdivisions are establishing high-density units: KB Homes, Pulte, Toll Brothers in Manhattan. Lennar is doing urban infill and redevelopment. All of these homebuilders see the writing on the wall, that there's going to be demand for something other than single-family-home subdivisions.

But I'm convinced that there are an equal number of enticements to come back in: a better sense of community, more convenience, better quality of life, and perhaps most importantly now, lower cost in terms of not having to fill up the tank of the car all the time.

Americans are discovering that sprawl is a false bargain. These costs and inconveniences reveal themselves only over time, so there's a kind of bait-and-switch quality to sprawl that leads people to see the sticker price and buy the home -- but then, a year later, it's costing an awful lot to heat or cool that 2,500-square-foot home. A year later the taxes are higher because the county or the local government has had to extend infrastructure to such far-flung areas. A year later, filling up the tank is costing $70, $80, $90 a week. That adds up to some real money for the family budget.

There has been a demonstrated revival of interest in living in cities. Now, a good part of that is retiring baby boomers selling the big house in the suburbs, moving into the city for the cultural amenities and convenience. Young professionals, certainly. But also families that are rediscovering older suburbs, moving into new urbanist projects that are more like the neighborhoods we used to build in this country before World War II. But it's early. Gas prices in particular need some time to really sink in.


What is this "INFILL" stuff?


A lot of the resistance to density and infill comes from current residents of those areas. They fear bigger taxes, crowded schools, crime. How do you get past that?

Smart growth is harder. It's harder to do than sprawl. You have to deal with existing neighborhoods, and you have to make it a participatory process. Otherwise it doesn't work and you're clashing all the time. You have to make it really well designed, to show that these kinds of developments and redevelopments are pleasant and vibrant places. And, by the way, they add value. Density and mixed-use and development around transit are good for the individual homeowner who's already there, because all of these trends add value.

In terms of statewide initiatives to address growth, things are changing rapidly. About 40 states have one form or another of smart-growth policies and initiatives. The most successful are those that emphasize incentives rather than focusing on restrictions on bad development.

Smart growth is actually a conservative notion, because it saves money. It saves money because cities and towns don't have to extend infrastructure so far. You're taking advantage of existing infrastructure with redevelopment, and you're also leveling the playing field.

Are there ways to improve sprawling suburbs and make them more like the kind of communities people want?

This is particularly true in the older suburbs, so-called mature or first-ring suburbs. These places are getting rediscovered because they have good bones; they have reasonably human-scaled street blocks and grids, and the infrastructure is all there. With those kinds of places, it's a matter of working on the transportation systems, making sure there's a town center that allows mixed use, making sure that you maintain a good open-space and parks network, because the great value of living this way is that you should be able to walk with your kid to a park.

For the closer-in suburban areas, you're already seeing a lot of reinventing going on. Example: Plano and Richardson, Texas, north of Dallas. These are becoming hotbeds for transit-oriented development and town-center living, as folks take advantage of a commuter rail network. I wouldn't necessarily have said 10 years ago that Plano would be a hotbed for smart growth, but it's being reinvented. It's possible.

There is an incredible sea change under way in terms of environmentalists embracing the basic principles of smart growth. Sierra Club is coming out now with the 12 best redevelopment sites in the country. That's really noteworthy.

Environmentalists -- and anybody who's concerned about global warming -- recognize that cities are, per capita, the most energy-efficient human settlements. Manhattan is one of the greenest places on Earth. They're working hand in hand with people concerned about affordable housing, planners, architects, labor, communities of faith -- there's a big coalition behind smart growth and new urbanism.

We're all realizing we put tons of carbon into the atmosphere, all of us, every year. It's primarily because of driving. Why do we drive so much? Well, it's the physical environment and the way it's dispersed. So let's address our physical environment. I see a new generation of environmentalists focused on how we've arranged our landscape for ourselves.

---
SOURCE:
What an amazing, lengthy discussion. That's why I love Grist.org! To read the complete article, go to grist.org/

Fireman’s Fund Introduces Green Building Coverage Discounts

NOVATO, Calif., Oct. 16, 2006 - Fireman's Fund Insurance Company has introduced Certified Green Building Replacement and Green Upgrade coverages, a new coverage specifically for green commercial buildings that addresses the unique risks that are acquired with sustainable building practices.

Under Fireman's Fund Green Building Replacement, Green Upgrade, and Commissioning coverages commercial property owners and managers are able to rebuild and replace with green alternatives such as:

* Non-toxic, low-odor paints and carpeting
* Energy Star-rated electrical equipment
* Interior lighting systems that meet LEED or Green Globe requirements
* Water efficient interior plumbing
* Energy Star-qualified roof and insulation materials
* Commissioning – Engineering inspection of systems such as HVAC

Fireman’s Fund says it is the first and only insurance company to offer coverage specifically for green commercial buildings and address the unique risks that are acquired with sustainable building practices.

This coverage protects buildings that are green-certified as well as buildings and facilities whose owners would like to capture green benefits. The coverage for LEED certified buildings offers a discount due to lower risk factors. Conventional insurance policies only cover the cost to restore a building to its original condition.

“The real estate industry is generally aware of the benefits of 'going green’ but building owners and managers should also be aware of the unique aspects of sustainable design,” said Steve Bushnell, product director at Fireman’s Fund.

Fireman’s Fund has worked closely with the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED program as well as the Green Building Initiative’s (GBI) Green Globes program to ensure that its coverage and upgrade options align with the industry’s major green certification processes. As part of the product, Fireman’s Fund will pay for the application process for the building to become certified by these organizations.

For buildings that are green certified by the USGBC or the GBI, Fireman’s Fund will cover sustainable building elements such as

* vegetated roofs and
* alternative energy and water systems.
* In case of a total loss, Fireman’s Fund will cover rebuilding to also be green certified.

For buildings that are working toward going green, Fireman’s Fund provides an upgrade package as part of its green product. For example, if there is a fire in the building, Fireman’s Fund will pay for the upgrade to replace the carpet with green certified carpet and energy star office equipment. Here again, if there is a total loss, Fireman’s Fund will cover for the entire rebuild to be green certified.

SOURCE: www.firemansfund.com

"1" Starwood hotel chain launches "green" luxury

I have to comment on this news...while it's admirable to contribute to one's industry, we have to ask the basic question of green stewardship... "Do we need another chain of luxury hotels?" While I don't know the answer to that question, I do hope the NRDC and other advisors are asking it and insisting on a realistic answer.

Luxury marketing can further entrench the "spoiled child" attitude that is at the heart of our sick planet syndrome. Hopefully, these developers and designers will take into consideration concepts such as minimalism, simplicity, just relationships, and human scale design as they attempt to redefine "green luxury".

And since they are coming to Southern California, we can all watch and respond to the impact they make on our communities -- good and/or not so good.


October 18, 2006 - Starwood Capital Group, led by Barry Sternlicht, announced today the launching of “1” Hotel and Residences, the first luxury, eco-friendly global hotel brand.

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has agreed to be an environmental advisor on “1” with the initial goal of setting a new standard for environmental excellence and, over time, to transform the entire hotel industry.

“As a CEO and parent of three young children, I have grown acutely aware of the personal responsibility we each have to help preserve and protect our planet, which can only happen through the accumulation of small efforts by millions of individuals. It is the perfect time for “1”. With such critical issues facing us as foreign energy dependence and global warming, we cannot afford to ignore the growing consumption of our natural resources and the inability to sustain our enterprises,” said Mr. Sternlicht.

"All of our buildings will be built to LEED standards and all of our interiors will be LEED-compliant,” continued Mr. Sternlicht.

The initial four properties in the United States will all be new construction. The first hotel will be the “1” Hotel and Residences Seattle expected to open in late 2008. Following Seattle, “1” will open in the ski resort of Mammoth Mountain, California; in Scottsdale, Arizona; and in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The first international “1” hotel will be located in Paris, France and will be a renovation of a historic property. In addition, we expect “1” to enter New York, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. and other major urban markets, as well as premier resort destinations, within the next 12 months. The aim will be to have 15 hotels signed or under construction within 24 months. The five hotels are owned by controlled affiliates of Starwood Capital Group Global, LLC.

For more than three decades, NRDC has fought successfully to defend wilderness and wildlife and to protect clean air, clean water and a healthy environment. “NRDC looks forward to working with the creators of “1” to help create exemplar environmental projects that can be models for the entire hotel industry,” said Ashok Gupta, an energy expert with NRDC.

Each new “1” will be built to LEED standards. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating SystemTM, created by the U.S. Green Building Council, is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.

Google installs the largest solar power system on one campus

By building the largest solar power system ever installed at a single corporate campus, Google will save more than $393,000 annually in energy costs — or close to $15 million over the 30-year lifespan of its solar system. At this rate, the system will pay for itself in approximately 7.5 years.

Like many of today's high-tech companies, Google requires an enormous amount of electricity to power the computers and servers it uses to run its business. The company wanted to find a way to reduce energy costs at its Mountain View "Googleplex," as well as make a statement in support of clean energy.

EI Solutions is one of California's fastest growing providers of large-scale solar power systems. EI Solutions headquarters are in San Rafael, California. All engineering, project management, finance and administrative functions are based at the company's headquarters. EI Solutions also operates from offices in Pasadena, California, the home of its parent company, Energy Innovations.

EI Solutions closely examined the company's electricity usage patterns, available financial incentives, and the amount of sun received at its Mountain View headquarters.

Because of the nontraditional design of the Google buildings, the EI Solutions team had to take a nontraditional approach to engineering the company's solar power system. To maximize energy output, the team assessed every available surface on the Google campus for its viability to hold solar photovoltaic (PV) cells. Eventually, more than 197,000 square feet on top of existing buildings and new parking lot shade structures (designed especially for the project) were fitted with cells using customized mounting hardware. To help reduce the cost of such a large installation, plus simplify any future maintenance needs, EI Solutions used one type of PV module in all arrays.

Levee repair protects agriculture and water supply for entire state

How do Northern California levees affect Southern California?


We need good, strong levees to preserve our state's farmland, keep our drinking water supply safe and protect our communities from dangerous flooding.

Floods harm communities and the web of life support systems that are woven together statewide and even nationally through agriculture and water supplies.

In February, the California governor declared a state of emergency to fast-track repairs on 29 of our most vulnerable levee sites in Northern California. Four more sites were added, bringing to 33 the total number critically weak levee sites that will be repaired by November 30th.

The Governor coordinated funding and all the necessary federal permits to prepare us for the coming winter and to do it in an environmentally responsible manner.

It's important to remember that we are only one big storm or one big earthquake away from a Katrina-like disaster. We can pay for flood prevention or pay for disaster cleanup. There is no third choice.

SOURCE: Lester Snow, Director, Department of Water Resources

Farming and sunshine go together like a horse and...

Pat Ricchiuti, owner of P-R Farms in Clovis and the president of the Fresno County Farm Bureau, now depends on the sun to save him money on his monthly electric bill.

In July 2005, Mr. Ricchiuti completed one of California’s largest privately-owned solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, situated on the roof of his 150,000-square foot packing house in the middle of agriculturally rich San Joaquin Valley. The 928 kW system, installed by PowerLight, helps provide energy for the processing and cold storage of over a million boxes of fruit every year.

The solar array has a variety of benefits for P-R Farms.

The system can provide up to 50 percent of the energy needs of the packing facility and cold room when operating at full capacity.

If at any point the array produces more energy than can be used on the farm, it simply feeds into the regional electricity grid.

Credit from the excess energy can be used up to a year later, allowing Mr. Ricchiuti to profit from sunshine year-round, even at night and outside of the peak fruit season.

With the solar array, Mr. Ricchiuti has seen drastic cuts in his energy bills. Before the installation of the system, it was not unusual for the farmer to pay more than $250,000 per year for electricity to run the packing house and cold storage facility. In the peak of the summer, monthly bills could range as high as $35,000. After the solar panels became active in July 2005, his monthly electric bill dropped to just over $9,000. In some months, electricity costs for cold storage and packing are now more than 80 percent less than before.

Mr. Ricchiuti’s system does more than save him money—it reduces the need for energy companies to install infrastructure like power lines and power plants. In recognition of the benefits that solar energy provides to society as a whole by producing power during long and hot summer days, when demand for power is highest, utility companies and the state and federal government offer rebates and tax incentives for solar energy.

In the case of P-R farms, these incentives covered half of the total cost.

After rebates, Mr. Ricchiuti invested $3.2 million in his solar array. Mr. Ricchiuti expects the investment to be fully paid off in a total of 10 years—after which the energy produced by the solar panels will be pure profit. With a lifetime of up to 30 years, the solar panels are a smart long-term investment.

“I see this as a way to become more competitive,” said Mr. Ricchiuti. “It makes economic sense.”

The solar panels also produce energy with zero global warming pollution. The panels reduce the need to draw power from California’s power grid, avoiding carbon dioxide emissions from power plants running on natural gas or coal.

Every year, the solar array effectively reduces California’s global warming pollution by 1.6 million pounds of carbon dioxide. 7 Over their 30-year expected lifespan, the solar panels could prevent as much as 48 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissons. 8 “I wanted, in some way, to help clean up the environment and give agriculture a good name,” explained Mr. Ricchiuti. “We’re just doing our share.”

Los Angeles schools save energy at hundreds of schools

Los Angeles Unified School District Los Angeles Unified School District is prioritizing energy efficiency in a massive school construction and repair project, upgrading lighting, heating and cooling systems in hundreds of schools.

Economic Benefits: In 2005, the district installed measures reducing energy costs by over $950,000.

Global Warming Benefits: These measures reduced global warming pollution by over 7 million pounds per year. California should establish policies that encourage all businesses to invest in costeffective ways to reduce global warming pollution. Toward that goal, the state should:

TREES to retrofit Los Angeles with urban vegetation at schools

Los Angeles is eliminating nearly 2 million square meters of pavement at local schools. This "de-paving" project is part of a wider effort of the Trans-Agency Resources for Environmental and Economic Sustainability (TREES) coalition, which includes an extensive strategic tree planting program.

TreePeople's T.R.E.E.S. Project stands for Transagency Resources for Environmental and Economic Sustainability. The project employs technologies that mimic the “sponge and filter” function of trees. It also demonstrates the technical and economic feasibility (and desirability) of retrofitting a city to function as an urban forest watershed.

In cities across the U.S. there is often not enough room for trees to capture all of the rainwater. The T.R.E.E.S. Project serves exactly that function, by advocating for a citywide system of cisterns and infiltrators to help capture stormwater runoff and recharge the aquifer -- just like a mature oak tree. This innovation also reduces the amount of pollution that reaches our rivers and ocean.

If implemented citywide, these best management practices could

Decrease our dependence on imported water by 50% and still keep the city green;

Reduce the threat of flooding and the quantity of toxic runoff to beaches and the ocean;

Cut the flow of solid waste to landfills by 30%

Improve air and water quality;

Decrease our energy dependence; and

Beautify neighborhoods in ways that would create up to 50,000 new jobs.


Lessons Learned: A Symposium on School Design
LAUSD / USC School of Architecture / J . PAUL GETTY Trust

The subject for this session of the symposium was Exterior Spaces. The general assumption underlying much of the discussion was that LAUSD building sites are getting and will increasingly get smaller and smaller over time thereby requiring buildings to become more vertical and reducing the amount of exterior open space available for use.

Increasingly, landscapes will exist on terra firma less and less, but will need to be conceived of at a variety of levels and on artificial surfaces. Current thinking needs to move from traditional notions of schoolyard exterior spaces of grass and playing fields to a concept for diverse environments with an appreciation for the climate and environment of Southern California.

There was a sense that everyone wished to integrate the curriculum with the outdoors including more exterior teaching stations. Teaching stations outdoors at the moment are very narrowly understood and should be revisited and imagined creatively by the LAUSD and everyone involved in their making. Exterior classrooms need to be defined as such and not nebulously conceived of as just another an aspect of a playground.

'Does the LAUSD have an expert in this area that can help set goals for play, recreation, and the integration of curricula with the outdoors?' Those desiring this philosophical reflection felt that often architects and landscape architects, drawing from personal experiences, were left as the harbingers of the values of exterior space and left to fight for these spaces relegated to secondary importance for one reason or another.

Creative programming and new ways of maximizing the use and appreciation of what the school has to offer is encouraged. In fact, contemporary examples have shown that when a community feels proud of their school, they become personally invested in, and begin to take responsibility for its maintenance and care - either in the form of planting and gardening or work parties to keep the school clean.

Key Issues:
Diverse Environments: Current thinking needs to move from traditional notions of schoolyard exterior spaces of grass and playing fields to a concept for diverse environments with an appreciation for the climate and environment of Southern California. Spaces of a variety of scales and material character should be designed to accommodate many different programs with differing physical activity levels for day, night, and weekend programming.

Problems:
Landscape architecture in general, and the design and planning of exterior spaces enters the project design sequence too late in the process. With the myriad of requirements the architect is expected to incorporate, the consideration of exterior spaces often gets postponed until the landscape architect joins the process. Typically, the landscape architect is contracted after the project had passed through the Design Review Board.

Opening schools to the community at night or on the weekends, while agreed to by all as a very important thing to do, puts incredible pressure on already over taxed landscapes, further reducing the possibility of foliage and other maintenance intensive aspects of the exterior space. An example of a space suffering from these pressures is the playing fields. The intensive, year round curriculum of the LAUSD system makes it difficult to re-sod the playing fields (which can take up to two months).

Many of the decisions for the exterior spaces of the school are made based on the cost at time of construction without consideration of the long term Maintenance & Overhead costs to the school. This is partly a problem of the structure of government funding policy. Sustainable materials for example, which may help reduce lifecycle costs and save the school money in the long run cannot be funded from Maintenance & Overhead budgets which is a common accounting procedure in the private sector.

Trees, as with most live materials, are generally difficult to include in school projects because they are so physically challenged. Saplings have difficulty surviving their early years of growth while more mature trees are generally too costly to include in the budgets.

Existing trees on the site, if any are always difficult to work around and generally wanted to be removed for ease of construction.

Maintenance and gardening costs also increase.

Considerations such as fire lanes or parking tend to eliminate possible locations for placement.

Trees are also viewed as problems in the main meeting spaces because they are seen to impinge on the flexibility and visibility that those spaces require.

Lastly, some voiced concerns that architects eliminate trees from their schemes for fear of obscuring the appreciation of the elevations of the buildings.

Design opportunities:
Because of the increasingly intensive use of our schools, new materials should be explored which will stand up to the challenges of increased, year-round usage. The example of the pressures that playing fields are subjected to must be considered an opportunity to explore other options for surfaces which are capable of withstanding intensive use.

Because less and less exterior space is left on the ground which we have always traditionally associated with usable exterior space, we must now consider the use of the tops and sides of buildings or garages as viable spaces for play or use. Also, because schools are now becoming multi-level, exterior program areas can be developed at a variety of levels throughout the project.

PROJECT EXAMPLE: Central LA Area new high school:

The main design concept for the landscaping lies in a series of formally distinguished, smaller, sub-spaces specifically programmed with a direct relationship to the activities going on in the adjacent buildings, all of which help frame the large central courtyard.

The main courtyard itself has a direct connection to the ampitheater and can be used for both large groups and teaching sites. Some of the other exterior spaces were a walled off music garden, a sunken court for the art studios, and reading gardens outside the ampitheatre.


Special features of school projects:

An herb garden located adjacent to a 'culinary arts center'.

A desert garden outside the second floor library doubles as an outdoor teaching center.

Benches and ground paving of colored concrete (considered rare for LAUSD projects because of cost). This was possible because the ampitheatre itself doubled as a stairway thereby eliminating the need for a second stair.

Many of the trees for the project (such as the grove of trees between the football and baseball fields) include donation by local nurseries and benefactors.

A garden just outside the library functions as a teaching site.

Placement of a small vegetable garden adjacent to the Kindergarten adding an outdoor and environmentally conscious element to the curriculum

The asphalt was painted in a variety of colored stripes to make the paving more lively and playful

Experiments with chain link fence were made to reduce the ordinary quality of it.

Specified decomposed granite in certain locations

Alternative materials for sound abatement were explored and deployed.

Create a conspicuous presence of trees. Find a way to be inclusive and protective of them; set aside funding for their maintenance. Many of the practitioners present recalled that the most prevalent memories from their own school years were memories of the trees on the campus. Use their intrinsic qualities to your advantage: ways of providing shade, gathering nodes, their natural ability to aesthetically soften spaces, controlling passive solar gain, etc. The LAUSD currently has a guidebook of acceptable trees which provides a diverse array of opportunities.


LAUSD will be opening up 243 acres of open space to communities all over Los Angeles in the coming years. These spaces are for the community. Because Los Angeles is in such dire need for new seats and space for a continually growing student body, the new buildings right now have a certain 'triage status' - mostly focusing on the provision of these seats.

VOLUNTEER COORDINATION?

As different each site is from one another, maintenance is as well. It has been shown that if the community feels proud of and connected with these spaces, parents, grand-parents, involved citizens and even some of the children will come on weekends and personally clean or plant these spaces out of care for the community at-large.