Monday, July 25, 2011
Meeting to review the Fairfax Co Green Building Policy
The Environment Committee of the Fairfax Co Plannning Commission will meet on the same night as the Gallows Rd/Rt 29 meeting to discuss the Green Building Policy that was adopted in 2007. The meeting is Wed. the 27th from 7-9 p.m. in the Board Auditorium, Fairfax County Government Center, 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax, VA 22035."At the time of the initial Green Building Policy adoption in December 2007, the Planning Commission was directed to review the policy after two years to assess the efficacy of the policy as well as to determine if any revisions were necessary, given that the green building field is rapidly evolving." Staff have reviewed the policy and developed a Draft Green Building Comprehensive Plan Policy Review Strawman. Part of the policy is to encourage more bicycling:
Policy e. Encourage energy conservation through the provision of measures which support nonmotorized transportation, such as the provision of showers and lockers for employees and the provision of bicycle parking facilities for employment, retail and multifamily residential uses.
While it's encouraging that bicycling is included in the policy, LEED specifications for bicycle facilities are inadequate in our opinion. We discussed this in an earlier post on bike parking at VDOT headquarters. The building is LEED-certified but has wave racks located 300 feet from the building entrance. Fortunately VDOT has agreed to provide inverted U racks adjacent to two building entrances for visitors and employees.We sent comments to the Planning Commission asking for more detailed bike recommendations in the green building policy. Fortunately a final draft bike of the county's parking guidelines have been released and we hope the become county policy this year.
Labels: bike parking, LEED
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Merrifield development achieves Silver LEED status
The project was recently awarded Silver LEED status. Bike parking, and changing and shower facilities are part of LEED certification. Below is a summary of the LEED 2009 bicycle requirements, which count for 1 point in the rating process.
New Commercial and Residential Construction
Commercial or Institutional Projects
These requirements are a start. Having bike parking within 200 yards of the building is insufficient. As with the Arlington Co bike parking requirements, more detail is needed to guide developers in selecting the type and location of the parking, which should be located much closer than 200 yards from the building. Now that Andy Clarke of the League of American Bicyclists is on one of the LEED advisory committees, these requirements should improve over time.Commercial or Institutional Projects
- Provide secure bicycle racks and/or storage within 200 yards of a building entrance for 5% or more of all building users (measured at peak periods)
- Provide shower and changing facilities in the building, or within 200 yards of a building entrance, for 0.5% of full time equivalent (FTE) occupants.
- Provide covered storage facilities for securing bicycles for 15% or more of building occupants.
- Provide secure bicycle racks and/or storage within 200 yards of a building entrance for 5% or more of all building staff and students above grade 3 level (measured at peak periods).
- Provide shower and changing facilities in the building, or within 200 yards of a building entrance, for 0.5% of full time equivalent (FTE) staff.
- Provide dedicated bike lanes that extend at least to the end of the school property in 2 or more directions with no barriers (e.g., fences) on school property.
Labels: league of american bicyclists, LEED, merrifield
