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BUF's New Addition
There is nothing in which the birds differ more from man than
the way in which they can build and yet leave a landscape as it was before.
~ Robert Lynd, The Blue Lion and Other Essays
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General Information
Our congregation is embarking on an exciting new phase. We are building an addition to our current building. This
has been a project ten years in the making. We plan to break ground on June 1, 2009. When the Design Team was formed,
we asked to have Green Sanctuary representation on the team. Glad we did! The congregation’s strong preference for
building green can be seen in the final design. Our new architect, Urban Design Group is a vanguard for sustainable
building practices in Whatcom County. One of the greenest features of the new building is its location within an
existing neighborhood, near bike-able roads and transit lines. The decision not to move away from the city core was
huge. In addition, almost all the rooms have moderated access to natural light – allowing passive lighting, and not
too much passive heating.
A Building Task Force was created to begin the implementation of the building process. After much debate and
discussion, the Task Force has hired a new architect and a general contractor to begin the construction process.
Key members of the congregation have met with the new architect to voice concerns and aspirations for the new
building.
Proposed plans for the new building have gone through the initial presentation process and images of what the
new building will look like can be found at
http://buf.org/building_images/index.html.
(For general building information beyond the addition check the links in the side menu bar. The Information
Center link will take you to a webpage designed to provide more detailed information on a variety of topics.
Green Building and Renovation is one of the many topics available. You can then go to listings of projects,
area resources, other weblinks, recommended reading materials, etc. You can also look in the "Other Links"
section of the side bar to go directly to local green building resources.)
Board Report article from the Feburary 2009 BUF Newsletter - By Molly Monahan, Board member and
Building Task Force member
As we move forward on finalizing the design of the new addition, the Board is very mindful of the congregation’s
strong preference for building as “green” as we can afford to. That is why it is a pleasure working with the Urban
Design Group, who is a vanguard for sustainable building practices in Whatcom County. We will build to LEED
standards where ever it is most appropriate and will strive for Silver LEED certification if funding can be obtained
for the process [click here for the technical specs of the LEED
program for information]. One of the greenest features of the new building is its location within an existing
neighborhood, near bike-able roads and transit lines. In addition, almost all the rooms have moderated access to
natural light – allowing passive lighting, and not too much passive heating. Many of the other features are not so
obvious, so let me list a dozen of the “green” elements of our design:
- 1. Two rain-gardens, to clean and handle most of our stormwater on-site.
- 2. Native landscaping around all sides of existing and new buildings.
- 3. Solar shading devices (trellis) to moderate solar exposure and heat gains (not too much,
not too little).
- 4. Pre-wired roof for solar (Photovoltaic) panels for future installation.
- 5. High energy-efficient (duel fuel) furnace and heatpump system.
- 6. Triple-pane window glazing with film or tint to increase personal comfort and solar deflection.
- 7. Super insulated building envelope (exterior of building), R-20 slab, R-25 wall, R-50 roof.
- 8. Low-impact building materials
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- a. Reclaimed/recycled hardwood, trim material and flooring;
- b. Metal standing-seam roof, most likely (longer life-span);
- c. All site-cast concrete will be of 60% or greater Fly-Ash (a waste product);
- d. Exposed integral-colored hardscape walls and patios;
- e. Low- or No-VOC Wall and Floor coverings/ paint/finishes;
- f. Local Vendors -- Local Materials.
- 9. Designated Bike Rack (30-40 stalls) on I Street.
- 10. Two shower rooms (for bicycle commuters), may be Phase II.
- 11. Perimeter and Interior spaces with separate heat/ cooling zones.
- 12. Room Occupancy Sensors (ROS) where necessary, to turn off unused lights automatically.
To name just a few. Plus we intend to recycle the Ellsworth house to the best of our ability. We are currently pricing
the insulating of the existing sanctuary roof and will do our best to include that work in phase one. And you should see
the size of the rain barrel!
Solar Power Update
From Molly Monahan, Board member and Building Task Force member (Feburary 2009)
The Building Task Force and our architect Dave Verret are consulting (again) with a solar expert in regards to the latest
version of our roof design to analyze the most practical application options available to us . . . Phase one of our
building project has always included designing for future solar panel installation. In phase one the junction boxes are
being built in designed in for the future installation of the panels.
On a similar note we have added the insulation of the roof on the existing sanctuary as a high priority for phase one.
The best energy policy is one that fully addresses the efficiency of USE of energy as well as the production of it. Also,
doing so during phase one will significantly lower the cost of doing so rather than after the new addition is tacked onto
the old.
What Other UUs Are Doing
Here are a few references to what other UU Congregations are doing in "greening" their buildings:
Faithfully Green: Unitarian Universalist Church of
Fresno builds a new church with an eye toward being eco-friendly.
Northwest UU Solar Video
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