City College Career Technology Center

The Career Technology Center provides updated and expanded facilities for high-demand vocational programs at the college. The project earned LEED certification for its sustainable design and construction, exceeding district requirements and providing a model for smart growth in an urban setting.

an Diego City College’s nursing, cosme- The project’s urban location provides conve- tology, and photography programs are nient access to alternative modes of trans- Senjoying modernized instructional and portation, with stops for seven bus routes career training space at the Career Technology and two trolley lines located within walking Center (CTC), a new 88,000 square foot distance. An eleven-story attached parking facility that will allow student enrollment to structure is available for those driving to the double for all three programs. With numerous facility. The benefits of the parking structure sustainable design strategies and features, extend beyond providing a place to leave a the building is the first on campus to earn car, however. Its strategic placement on the LEED certification at the Gold level, and only east side of the classroom building reduces the fifth to do so in the San Diego Community solar loads by shading the shorter structure, Award Category College District. lowering cooling requirements in the class- Overall Sustainable rooms. The parking structure is entirely Design naturally ventilated, with the exception Green Features of a partial basement area, eliminating High-density urban fan energy consumption. infill and brownfield remediation Roughly 28% of materials are 64% construction waste sourced regionally from within diverted from landfill 500 miles of the building, and Rooftop and vertical wall over 50% of wood products are photovoltaic systems from FSC-certified forests. 55% reduction in indoor water consumption The south exterior wall of the parking structure is clad with a vertical photo- Drought-tolerant and voltaic array, which at 34 kW was low-maintenance landscaping design thought to be the largest in the country Exterior view of the Career Technology Center. at the time of construction. The system Photo: San Diego Community College District. Systems commissioning is positioned to maximize renewable Informational signage energy generation in winter months, and for sustainable features Sustainability at the CTC begins with the build- ing’s site. This five-story urban infill project to shade the garage from heat gain in the Annual Energy and increases the area’s development density, summer. A second photovoltaic system is Cost Savings replacing several single-story buildings and located on the roof of the classroom building. 27% greater efficiency ground level parking that formerly existed The 17 kW roof array, mounted at a 17 degree than Title 24 standards on the site. However, repurposing this previ- slope, maximizes output during summer months. Together these systems are predicted 1240 MBtu ously developed property was not without its to generate 71,500 kWh annually, reducing $23,200 surprises. During the initial excavation the project team discovered an unexpected pocket building energy costs by nearly eight percent. Size of petroleum-based soil contamination, most The project team further reduced energy use 88,000 ft² likely the by-product of auto mechanic shops through a series of strategic design decisions. Cost operating under laxer environmental laws in The two stair towers in the classroom building place years ago. Remediation was performed are located at the perimeter to enable passive $63.1 million for 8000 cubic yards of contaminated soil, ventilation of accumulated solar heat gain. Completion Date turning the CTC into a model for smart growth This approach also encourages vertical circu- April 2010 through brownfield redevelopment. lation via the stairs rather than the elevator,

Best Practices Case Studies 2011 Page 1 saving energy and promoting healthy habits water use is expected from the waterfree among building users. urinals, dual-flush toilets, and low-flow lava- tory faucets. Drought-tolerant plantings and Daylight harvesting was a design priority synthetic turf reduce irrigation water demand throughout the CTC. In the classroom building, by 57 percent. An additional benefit of the southern facades are stepped back to allow landscape design is its low maintenance daylight penetration at several corners, and requirements, which has generated positive extensive glazing on the northern exposure feedback from the college’s landscape staff. Additional Awards maximizes daylight and views. Glazing on LEED-NC Gold the west side of the building has either a 40 The CTC is thought to have to largest percent ceramic frit coating or is shaded by Contacts vertical solar array in the country at vertical perforated metal panels to allow for the time of its construction. District Architect, views and daylighting while controlling heat San Diego Community gain. Work and study areas in the building are The project team took several steps to ensure College District: equipped with daylight controls and occupancy that the completed building provides users Lance Lareau sensors to further reduce electric loads. with a high level of indoor air quality. Low-emit- [email protected] ting materials are used extensively throughout 619.388.6546 the project to reduce off-gassing of poten- Project Team tially harmful pollutants. An indoor air quality Architect: Carrier management plan was implemented to control Johnson + CULTURE pollutant sources during the construction and Civil Engineer: pre-occupancy phases. Just prior to occupancy, RBF Consulting the building was flushed with outside air for Structural Engineer: eleven days to remove particulates and provide KPFF Consulting a high level of occupant comfort upon occu- Engineers pancy. Walk-off grates at ground floor entry- Mechanical Engineer: ways are included to capture contaminates MA Engineering from foot traffic and help maintain air quality. Electrical Engineer: LESSONS LEARNED ILA Zammit Vertical photovoltaic array on garage structure. Shortly after the CTC opened, a few students Photo: San Diego Community College District. Landscape: McCullough expressed concern that the parking garage Landscape Architecture stairwells were underlit. The college performed Construction Manager: Due to its multiple energy conservation foot-candle measurements throughout the Rudolph & Sletten, Inc. approaches and year-round renewable energy structure and found that lighting levels met production, the CTC will use 25 percent less Propositions S & N or exceeded state recommendations. At Program Manager: energy than allowed by Title 24. The building the suggestion of the students, the campus Gafcon, Inc. underwent thorough commissioning during installed mirrors in the stairwells to improve its initial occupancy to ensure that systems More Information visibility and enhance a sense of security in were performing as designed. Another evalua- these spaces. The solution has resolved the http://public. tion will take place after one year of operation sdccdprops-n.com/ issue and created goodwill between admin- to assess how actual energy performance istrators and students. David Umstot, SDCC Projects/City/ compares to modeled estimates. Pages/1122.aspx District Vice Chancellor of Facilities Manage- Water use at the CTC has been reduced ment, stresses the importance of being dramatically, both in the building and on the responsive to the needs of building users and grounds. A 55 percent reduction in indoor taking corrective action whenever feasible.

Best Practices case studies are coordinated by the Green Building Research Center, at the University of , Berkeley. The Best Practices Competition showcases successful projects on UC and CSU campuses to assist campuses in achieving energy efficiency and sustainability goals. Funding for Best Practices is provided by the UC/CSU/IOU Energy Efficiency Partnership.

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