Green building |
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Location: Tacoma
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Salishan 7 is the first federal public housing project to achieve a LEED for Homes platinum certification. The project involved the construction of 91 units for low-income families. Months before breaking ground, the general contractor, Walsh Construction Co., conducted a rigorous review of the project in order to develop strategies to earn a LEED certification. The efforts encouraged the Tacoma Housing Authority to pursue a platinum rating. The sustainability upgrades added 7 percent to the overall budget, but resulted in a 30 percent increase in energy efficiency, equivalent to removing 27 homes from the electrical grid. Walsh carried out a comprehensive air-sealing strategy. Thermal imagery and blower-door technology were used to diagnose unforeseen air-sealing problems, enabling fixes to walls before they were closed up. Walsh added other green features, including enhanced windows, above-code insulation and smart meters for each home. Nearly all the stormwater is routed through bioswales, and landscaping choices reduced water use by 60 percent.
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