Alameda County Celebrates 'Green Building' Achievements at Hospital

From Alameda County:

The Acute Care Tower Replacement Project at Highland Hospital, an extensive $668 million modernization of the historic hospital campus, will receive special recognition at a meeting of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors on October 11 for design achievements that will save energy and conserve natural resources.

An official with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) will be on hand to officially notify Alameda County and the Alameda Health System (AHS) – jointly responsible for Highland and other facilities in the AHS network – that two new facilities at Highland have received national Gold certification through the USGBC’s prestigious LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) green building program, which rates building projects according to their high-performance achievements in resource conservation and energy savings.

In addition, officials from PG&E will present Alameda County – which is funding the project – with nearly $750,000 in incentive payments for the innovative engineering design approaches incorporated into the Highland facilities’ design that will significantly reduce energy use at Highland.

The achievements will be celebrated at the Board of Supervisors’ meeting at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, October 11. The meeting will take place in the Board Chambers, 5th Floor, 1221 Oak Street, Oakland.

The multi-phase modernization project at Highland – the cornerstone of Alameda County’s public health care system – is the largest construction project ever funded by Alameda County. When County supervisors committed to the project more than a decade ago, they stood behind their investment as one that would ensure first-rate care is available to all residents – regardless of their ability to pay – for decades to come. They also pledged that Highland’s new facilities would reach the same lofty “green building” standards achieved by several new County buildings over the past decade – including the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center in San Leandro, also a LEED Gold ® building; and the REACH Ashland Youth Center, which achieved the highest LEED Platinum ® rating.

The achievements that will be celebrated on October 11 show that those promises have been realized.

“This project represents our deep commitment to future generations of Alameda County residents,” said Scott Haggerty, President of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. “It is the backbone of a world-class public health care system that will benefit residents for years to come, and a symbol of how innovative new building standards allow even our most extensively used public facilities to be environmentally friendly.”

Susan S. Muranishi, Alameda County Administrator, said the project also affirms the commitment to sustainability that Alameda County made in 2009 when it adopted its pioneering Green Building Ordinance, which guides all County building projects and requires the majority of new residential and commercial construction in the County’s unincorporated areas to meet elevated standards for reducing water and resource usage, reducing waste and increasing energy efficiency.

“As we near completion of this monumental project at Highland Hospital, it is a great time to celebrate the positive impact Alameda County is having in terms of protecting the environment, providing accessible health care and supporting our region’s vibrant green-building industry,” she said.

The construction project began in 2010. Its first major new facility, the Highland Care Pavilion, opened in 2013 and includes 10 specialty clinics. The project reached a critical stage this April when Highland’s new 9-story Acute Care Tower, the centerpiece of the multi-year modernization project, opened to patients. The project’s final phase, which includes demolition of the old tower and construction of a new hospital entrance and courtyard, is now underway with completion scheduled for 2017. The Highland Care Pavilion and the Acute Care Tower are both being recognized for achieving LEED Gold ® rating.

Energy saving achievements at the two facilities will also be celebrated as Alameda County is presented with an incentive check for nearly $750,000 – $236,000 for the Highland Care Pavilion and $500,000 for the Acute Care Tower – by officials from PG&E through the company’s Savings By Design program, which encourages construction projects to exceed California’s Title 24 energy-efficiency standards and offers financial incentives to do so.

Highland Hospital, which has operated in Oakland since 1927, is the flagship hospital within the integrated network of health care facilities operated by Alameda Health System (AHS). Highland is home to one of the world’s most effective regional trauma centers and emergency departments. It is the leading teaching and training institution for future surgeons and specialists who serve throughout the country.

AHS also includes the 251-bed Alameda Hospital which includes sub-acute and skilled nursing facilities, 93-bed San Leandro Hospital, 80-bed John George Psychiatric Pavilion, 159-bed Fairmont Hospital, a skilled-nursing and acute-rehab facility, and a network of community wellness centers. AHS has operated as a semi-autonomous health authority since mid-1998 and its land and buildings are owned by Alameda County. For more information about the Highland Hospital Acute Tower Replacement project, please visit here.

Image via Alameda County