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LEED Projects
Professionals at The Lawrence Group Taking Aggressive Stance Toward Acquiring LEED Accreditation
August 24, 2006
ST. LOUIS, MO – The Lawrence Group has already made a New Year’s Resolution for 2007…to increase its number of
| Click on photos to view and download high-res images. |
Cupples Station Rendering |
Security Building First Floor Main Lobby |
Security Building Ninth Floor Roof Deck |
Security Building Exterior Detail |
professional staff with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) accreditation to nearly 40 – five times its current number. The Lawrence Group’s LEED study group, called LGA LEEDers, is led by employees who have already received their LEED accreditation and are willing to mentor other interested employees within the company.
“Our long term goal is to promote LEED ideals in green design within our firm and community,” said Todd Bundren, a designer at The Lawrence Group who is heading the program. “We have had a great response within the firm with approximately 30 individuals participating, all with the common goal of passing the accreditation exam before our new year’s deadline.”
The LEED Green Building Rating System‚ is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for energy conservation and environmental sensitivity. Based on well-founded scientific standards, LEED emphasizes state-of-the-art strategies for sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. LEED was created to define “green building,” recognize environmental leadership in the building industry, stimulate green competition and raise consumer awareness of green building benefits.
“We are responding to a changing world and the need to integrate ecologically-friendly design and strategies into our everyday lives,” Bundren said. “I believe we are on the cutting edge of this movement and hope to be leaders in this area of overall design and development. Green architecture applies to all of our projects, whether it be commercial, residential or healthcare.”
This spring, The Lawrence Group received a regional excellence award from St. Louis Construction News & Review magazine for the “green” historic renovation of the Security Building in downtown St. Louis. The Lawrence Group plans to seek a Gold LEED rating on the structure.
The $10 million restoration project included reusing the 11-story building’s original windows and glazing them with low E insulated glass, restoring the atrium lobby dome to bring in natural light and using many materials produced within a 500-mile radius of St. Louis to reduce energy used in shipping. All wood used in the project was also certified by the Forest Stewardship Council to ensure that no endangered forests or other areas were harmed.
Originally built in 1892 and currently on the National Register of Historic Places, the Security Building is only the third dual “green” and historic renovation in the country, and the first in St. Louis. The Lawrence Group has been located in the building for more than 12 years and purchased it in 2003.
“We had clients asking about green design, so we thought, ‘What better way to learn and understand it than at our own building,’” said David Ohlemeyer, a principal at The Lawrence Group and the firm’s first LEED accredited staff member.
Additional “green” projects in the works for The Lawrence Group include the Cupples Station Building One in downtown St. Louis. Once a former warehouse, the building is being converted into 88,000 square feet of open loft office space. The project features new stair and elevator cores tucked discretely within the shell of the existing building, minimizing the impact to original warehouse structure. A penthouse addition with a roof deck and a green roof enhance the top of the building and provide amenity space for the building tenants. The Lawrence Group plans to seek a Silver LEED rating on the structure when it is completed.
The Lawrence Group is one of the largest and fastest growing architectural, interior design and town planning firms in St. Louis with 180 employees in five states, including network offices in Austin, New York City, Denver and the Carolinas. Named in the “Top 100 Giants” by Interior Design magazine and the “Top 500 Design Firms” by Engineering News Review, The Lawrence Group is an industry leader in design, project delivery and real estate development services to health care, commercial and housing clients. The Lawrence Group is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the U.S. Green Building Council. For more information, call Donna Gamache, director of communications, at 314-231-5700 x341 or visit www.thelawrencegroup.com.
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