Cambridge, Ontario. City Hall is Golden-First City Hall in the Nation to Achieve Gold

It’s Official: Cambridge City Hall is Gold LEED
Similar to completing the last mile in an Olympic race, the City of Cambridge today proudly completes its journey to officially achieve Gold certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) from the Canada Green Building Council. The prestigious award makes it the first city hall in Canada to receive Gold, a testament to the leadership and vision of the municipality and community participants.

The design focuses on energy conservation with anticipated annual cost savings of about 42 percent by incorporating features like a high-efficiency modulating gas boiler, day lighting and motion sensors to reduce the use of artificial lighting, radiant heating panels to save fan power, operable windows and a green roof. The atrium is a magnificent showpiece with a four-storey “living wall” which acts as a bio-filter and provides clean air that is circulated through the ventilation system to the entire building.

The building is wired with the latest technological advancements including computer room cooling systems for network operations and over 40 miles of 10GX cable and 2 miles of fibre optic cable for data, voice, security cameras, and wireless access points. The City of Cambridge is the first municipality to use the 10GX cable in the installation. There’s even a weather station on the roof that’s tied to computer operations to help regulate operable windows.

“This acknowledgement puts the project on the national environmental stage,” says Mayor Doug Craig. LEED is the most renowned green building rating system in North America. “We share this award with our community and the many partners who came together to make this project a success.”

The new building employs features of sustainable design and represents the wave of the future in the field of architecture. A comprehensive list of over 50 partners and suppliers brought expertise in areas from structural and mechanical engineering to green wall design. These firms included: Diamond and Schmitt Architects Inc., principal architect; Vanbots, general contractor; Enermodal Engineering Ltd., LEED consultants; MCW Consultants Ltd., electrical and mechanical consultant; ERA Architect Inc., heritage consultant; Nedlaw Roofing Ltd., green wall and green roof; Albrecht Reinforcing Inc., reinforcing steel ; Allwood Carpentry Manufacturing, carpet supplier; Read Jones Christoffersen, structural engineer; Marshall Macklin Monaghan, civil engineering; Nelco Mechanical Ltd., sheet metal and HVAC; Unis Lumin, computer systems; AFG Glass, glass supplier; Allwood Carpentry Manufacturing, carpentry supplies; Belluz Group Ltd., ceramic tile and carpeting ; Camino Modular Systems Inc., static control flooring; Commercial Door and Hardware, wood door supplier; Fleisher Ridout Partnership Inc., landscape consultant; Fortis Electric Ltd., electrical installation; George & Asmussen Ltd., stone and masonry work; L.A. Steel Group Inc., structural steel; London Caulking and Installations, waterproofing; Oakdale Drywall & Acoustics Ltd., drywall and acoustics; P.M. Designs, various metal work; Pro-Bel Enterprises Ltd., green wall platform; Regal Door & Hardware, metal door and finishing hardware; Global, furniture; Schindler Elevator Corporation, elevator; Clifford Restoration Limited, slate roof; Bel-Air Excavating and Grading , site removal; Ciro Excavating & Grading, building and site excavation; Northwest Contracting, site services; Reimar Forming Construction, concrete formwork and finishes; Vipon, fire protection; Trow Associates, inspections; and MTE engineering; consulting engineers.

“There were so many project partners who enhanced the building experience and brought dedication to the fore,” says Don Smith, Chief Administrative Officer. “Thank you to all the firms for their leadership, and to the people on the project steering committee who volunteered their time and energy to make this an eco-friendly demonstration project.”

The award winning project was achieved without the need to use new tax dollars and was financed through the settlement of a loan with the city’s hydro utility. The $30 million project came in on time and on budget and represents the largest capital project in the municipalities’ history.

A conservative estimate comparing a standard 85,000 square foot building to the Cambridge City Hall Gold LEED standard building would save over $160,000 on energy per year or $1.6 Million over 10 years.

In June, the City of Cambridge was commended for recycling computer materials and diverting more than 4,400lbs from landfill during the transition to the new City Hall. This adds to the fact that 82 per cent of construction waste was also diverted from landfill.

Officially opened in June 2008 and occupied by staff in February the same year, the Cambridge City Hall project began in 2005. It is now a Wi-Fi hotspot offering wireless computer services through Atria and the atrium also features a computer kiosk to provide a green education program all year long for all City Hall visitors to enjoy.
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