Front 5 Building's officially green

Structure designed by Boise architects gets LEED status-Environment at work

Idaho Statesman
03/15/2006

Front Street got a little greener this year when the the U.S. Green Building Council gave the Front 5 Building its certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED.

At the corner of Front and 5th streets, the Front 5 Building is just a block away from the Ada County Courthouse, which became the first building in Idaho to get LEED certification last year.

The Front 5 Building is believed to be only the second building in Idaho to meet LEED standards. It is the first privately owned commercial building to meet the standards, according to Cole & Poe Architects, which designed the building and moved its offices there.

"It's healthier for the environment," Stan Cole, an architect with Cole & Poe, said of the building´s LEED status. The building is also home to Windermere Real Estate and the building's owners, Oaas Laney LLC.

The U.S. Green Building Council set up the national LEED standards in 2000. Since then, it has certified nearly 300 green buildings nationwide and has about 2,200 in the pipeline. About 10 buildings in Idaho are on their way to earning certification.

Oaas Laney spent $5 million renovating the old warehouse that once served the railroad line to Downtown Boise. The architects and Petra, the general contractor, converted the warehouse into an environmentally friendly place to work.

Here are some of the ways the building is sustainable:

• Front 5 has more windows and skylights to let in natural sunlight and save on utility bills.
• Mechanical systems make the building 25 percent more energy efficient than the standard building.
• The building uses a low flow/high pressure water system to conserve the amount of water used each day.
• Recycled materials were used to construct many parts of the building, including steel in the entryway, the insulation, aluminum metal panels, tiles and the carpet.
• "We're on board with (LEED) because we think it is the right way to design, and we think it's better for Idaho in general," Cole said.

Inside Cole & Poe's office space in the Front 5 building, the room was almost entirely lit with natural sunlight coming in through windows and skylights during a recent visit. Cole also pointed out that the carpet and some pieces of furniture were made from recycled materials.

Cole & Poe is working on two other sustainable buildings right now that might qualify for LEED in the future: the city of Boise's educational center being built near the wastewater treatment plant and the Premier/Title One Alliance Building near the Idaho Center in Nampa. Both will be LEED eligible, Cole said.

"Our first recommendation (to clients) is that we would like to see your building be sustainable," Cole said.

Several other green buildings are under way in Idaho, including the 11-story Banner Bank Building at 10th and Bannock in Downtown Boise.

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