Rating System

LEED BD+C: New Construction, LEED BD+C: New Construction, LEED BD+C: New Construction

Rating System Version

v2 - LEED 2.0, v2 - LEED 2.2, v2 - LEED 2.2

Inquiry

Our project is a 1.2 million SF Medical Science Building renovation and expansion for an urban university campus. The program consists of research and teaching laboratories, lab support areas, offices, conference rooms, lecture halls, classrooms, libraries, food service, and public areas. There are two adjacent major urban hospitals and no adjacent residential neighborhoods. This medical science building and all the adjacent hospital facilities in this area are 24 hour operations. The street lights along the block are cobraheads so there is a significant ambient light level. We are requesting an interpretation for the selection of the exterior luminaires for pedestrian walkways and plaza areas. The intent of SS Cr. 8 v2.1 states "Eliminate light trespass from the building and site, improve night sky access and reduce development impact on nocturnal environments." The credit requires luminaires with more than 3500 initial lamp lumens to meet the Full Cutoff Classification. It also requires zero light to cross project or real campus property boundaries and zero uplight. Due to the high ambient light levels in the vicinity of the site, we are requesting a variance to use a luminaire with a small amount of uplight. This luminaire meets the requirements of other current industry standards where environmental zone is taken into effect with respect to light pollution. Within this setting, current industry standards would allow "up to 5% of the total initial designed fixture lumens above 90 degrees" and "a maximum initial illuminance value of no greater that 0.20 horizontal and vertical footcandles at the site boundary and must drop off to 0.01 footcandles within 15 feet beyond the site". The luminaire we are requesting to use is classified as Cutoff and has only 0.5% initial lamp lumens and 1.2% of the total initial designed fixture lumens above 90 degrees from nadir. The luminaire provides no direct glare. Additionally, this luminaire has been selected to be the new Campus Exterior Lighting Standard (meeting the newer LEED NC v2.2 for this credit). All future campus projects will use this fixture. The University desires to use it for this v2.1 project at this time. The use of this one luminaire across the campus offers benefits of sustainability with respect to maintenance practices by reducing the quantity of spare fixtures, components and lamps needed. It also provides campus design continuity in their open spaces.