Oakton's Lee Center receives LEED Gold certification

The Margaret Burke Lee Science and Health Careers Center (Lee Center) was recognized at Oakton's board of trustees meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 19, for earning LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

The certification means the Lee Center, designed by Legat Architects and built by Turner Construction, ranks among the most efficient public buildings in the country. The Lee Center opened in 2015.

To earn LEED recognition, building projects satisfy prerequisites that include energy efficiency, energy generation, water conservation, use of recycled materials, minimization and reuse of construction waste and use of low gaseous emissions materials.

Forty percent of the building materials used in the Lee Center are recycled materials sourced from within 500 miles of the building site.

The building helps educate users about conservation with signs that highlight sustainable innovations. In the main lobby, the walls are covered in reclaimed wood sheathing from a Midwestern barn. Placement of windows and skylights helps mitigate the use of electric lighting. Light is provided by LED bulbs, which use 30 percent less electricity than fluorescent bulbs, contain no mercury and last 10 times longer.

Computer-controlled window shades sense the sun's angle, temperature and wind speed to help cool the building and allow heat and light in during colder weather. Solar panels are positioned to shade windows and move with the season to maximize energy production. The elevator — constructed from 95 percent recycled material — is twice as efficient as standard traction elevators and requires no maintenance oils. Filtered water stations allow users to refill water bottles.