Clinton Presidential Center Attains LEED Silver

The William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park is the first project to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver rating in the State of Arkansas, and the first presidential library to be LEED rated. The library, designed by Polshek Partnership Architects, exemplifies various sustainable design strategies. The energy efficiency and LEED consulting were provided by Steven Winter Associates, Inc. (SWA).

Located on the banks of the Arkansas River in the city’s River Market District, the 32-acre presidential center has more open space than any other presidential library. The library takes the form of a glass bridge symbolizing President Clinton’s theme of “Building a Bridge to the 21st Century,” reaching out towards the river.

There are a number of sustainable design features throughout the center, reflecting the Clinton administration’s commitment to the environment. For example, the welcoming exhibition hall has flooring made entirely of bamboo – a sustainably harvested, renewable product. The building is equipped with a high-efficiency heating and cooling system, which was shown in energy simulation models to reduce the energy required to air condition a comparably sized museum building by more than 40 percent.

There are also no CFC-based refrigerants used in the cooling system, as well as no HCFCs and halons (which deplete the Earth’s ozone layer). An array of photovoltaic panels on the building’s roof will provide 66,000 kWh of power a year. The project uses recycled content and locally supplied materials, along with low-VOC emitting adhesives, sealants, paints, carpets, and wood materials, and a carbon dioxide monitoring system.

The building is also innovative in its use of translucent and transparent sun screens, which reduce solar heat gain by half. Concrete floor slabs employ radiant cooling, and on the roof, light-colored ballast materials are used on approximately 75 percent of the flat roof surface to help mitigate the building’s heat island effects.

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From Environmental Design+Construction, a SustainableBusiness.com Content Partner.