Special Transit Building

June 29, 2011 5:30 PM 
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Special Transit is a private non-profit agency located in Boulder, Colorado that provides an efficient, cost-effective and accessible transportation system for seniors and people with disabilities residing in Boulder and Boulder County. Their mission is to promote independence and self-sufficiency for people with limited mobility by providing caring, customer-focused transportation options.




OZ Architecture designed the 53,000 square foot facility on the 6.87 acre site to house the primary administrative operations and maintenance functions. The site is comprised of 2 terraces, the upper terrace along 63rd Street and the lower terrace approximately 17 feet below, providing the opportunity to maximize views for the administration and hide maintenance parking and storage uses below.

Views into the site from below are screened with a vegetated border on the west side of the detention pond. Parking is provided for 100 buses at the lower level, as well as 2 separate areas for employee parking at the upper tier adjacent to the administration space. The maintenance facility includes six bus bays with lifts and/or pits for bus maintenance, a drive-through wash bay and a CNG fueling station.


The Operations Center includes classroom and driver break areas, a scheduling and dispatch center, offices for administrative and operations staff. The public will have access to the facility for the purposes of mobility assessment and travel training, purchasing bus passes, etc. Conference space within the facility will be used to promote community transit in partnership with city and county governments. Area: 53,000 square foot facility, 6.87 acres
    
The energy efficiency features of this spectacular new building includes Solar Electric, EE glass, water conservation features, radiant floor slab, high efficiency HVAC, HRS, lighting, daylighting and control systems, other interior features include low VOC and more. 

Specialty Features

WATER  EROSION  PROTECTION  SYSTEM includes  a grass-lined  detention pond  with pretreatment  chamber for  secondary  containment of  runoff from vehicle  parking area. 

NATURAL GAS WATER HEATERS, RADIANT  FLOOR BOILER AND HYDRONIC HEATING BOILER:  92,000 therms saved per year, translating into $8,500 annual savings in utility costs. 

PEDESTRIAN AND  BICYCLE TRAILS  link Special Transit to the  extensive city of Boulder  trails system. 

97 KW GRID-CONNECTED  PHOTOVOLTAIC SOLAR  POWER SYSTEM, with an  estimated savings of 85,000  kilowatt hours per year. 

BUS WASH AND WATER  RECLAMATION SYSTEM  Heated water used for washing a bus  passes through a series of filters and is  routed back to be used on the next bus  through a continual loop system  estimated at 85% recycle efficiency.

 A LIGHTING CONTROL  SYSTEM with dual level  switching and occupancy  sensors regulates all lighting.  A computerized Energy  Management Control  system provides 24-  hour monitoring of all  mechanical and  plumbing systems. 

THE BUILDING ENVELOPE exceeds compliance  standards for ASHRAE 90.1 2004 levels of wall and roof  insulation and glazing properties (low thermal conductance  and low solar heat gain factor for glass). Improved  engineered glazed glass, shades and insulation significantly  increase building performance (walls, R-20; roof, R-30;  glazing, U=.28; SC=.33; lighting .9w/sf).  

WATER CASCADE DIRECT/INDIRECT  EVAPORATIVE COOLING AND HIGH EFFICIENCY  HVAC SYSTEM. A large cylindrical perforated aluminum  heat wheel acts as an air exchanger, causing incoming air to  approach thermal equilibrium with the exiting air. When heat is  called for, the wheel slowly moves into the building’s exhaust air  duct and is warmed by the inside air passing through the wheel.  As the wheel continues to rotate, it enters the duct work bringing  fresh outside air into the building.  There the heat recovered from the  exhaust air is transferred to the incoming air. Cooling occurs through  pre-cooling 100% of the outside air through the heat wheel that is cooled by  evaporation on the other side; building air is then passed through a water-soaked grid  and gets additional cooling while picking up humidity.  Anticipated energy consumption of  26,043 BTU/FT2-YEAR (42% better than baseline ASHRAE 90.1 system). 

RADIANT FLOOR  HEATING in the bus  services bays improves  warmth for the  maintenance crews  while reducing heat  loss when the bay  doors are open. 

DAYLIGHT HARVESTING  utilizes the central spine clerestory  along the north/south  orientation with exposure to  the east.  Light shelves  allow the use of dimming  and photo cells to reduce  lighting loads which reduce  cooling loads in the office  spaces.  Approximately 90% of the space  has access to daylight through the perimeter  window system.  The 6.8 acre former Brickyard site is gifted with a noticeable grade,  allowing a tiered building design with southern site orientation and  future expansion opportunities. The “garden level” design minimizes  the facility’s overall footprint,and the administration building screens  the bus storage and maintenance areas from public view. 

PLANT MATERIALS are low  hydrozone rated or xeric, responding to  the semi-arid climate conditions of the  eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains. 

EXTENSIVE USE OF LOCAL RECYCLED MATERIALS  including steel for decking, framing, floor and studs use as well as  recycled concrete, masonry, carpet and rubber flooring.  6 7

Contractor Information

The following Contractors have worked on this project and will attend this event to speak about their involvement with the project.

Project Manager/ Architect- Kevin Schaffer, AIA, LEED AP, Senior Associate, OZ Architecture
Builder/ Project Manager- Patti Micklin, Director of Development, Special Transit
Mechanical Expert – Veronica Brunk, Mechanical Engineer, Special Transit Project Team
Renewable Energy/ Other- Geoff Manchester, Lighthouse Solar

Other contractors involved:

Architect OZ Architecture Structural Engineer: JVA, Inc. Design Mechanical Consultant: RMH Group Design Electrical Consultant: RMH Group Landscape Architect: Outside LA

Solar Installer: Lighthouse solar Civil Engineer: Accurate Engisurv LLC Contractor: Golden Triangle Construction Mechanical Contractor: Trinity Mechanical Electrical Contractor: Barnes Electrical

Panel of Experts

Moderator:
Gwen Farnsworth, Senior Energy Policy Advisor Western Resource Advocates
At WRA, Ms. Farnsworth develops and advocates for policies and mechanisms that reduce the environmental impact of energy production and use in the interior western states, with a focus on accelerating the region's transition to renewable energy, energy efficiency, and other clean energy strategies. She primarily supports WRA’s work in Colorado by participating in regulatory, legislative, and other policy forums. Gwen joined WRA in March 2011. Prior to this, she was an associate research director at E Source in Boulder, Colorado, where her research focused on energy efficiency and distributed  energy generation program design, marketing, implementation, evaluation and regulatory policy.  She also previously worked as a research fellow at the RAND Corporation in California and as an intern at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Austria. She has a BA in Political Science and a BA in Russian Civilization from the University of California, Los Angeles and an MPh in Public Policy Analysis from the RAND Graduate School in Santa Monica, California.

Steve Brauneis
Mr. Brauneis was the Director of Sustainability for a mid-size chain of lumberyards, his responsibilities included evaluation of all company inputs and consumables including, products for sale, vehicles, energy and fuels, lighting, solid waste and building operations and design. Operational efficiency and profitable green product line management were his focus. Outreach efforts included green building workshops for internal sales force and professional contractors.

Don Saal, PE, CGD, LEED AP BD+C STUDIO DIRECTOR, Architectural Energy Corporation
Don Saal coordinates sustainable design consulting, energy and daylighting modeling and analysis, air flow modeling, and LEED certification consulting on residential, commercial, and institutional building projects. He works with design teams, from concept design through construction, to set goals and establish a framework for incorporating sustainability strategies into all aspects of the project design.
Mr. Saal’s engineering background has provided him a wide array of experience with building systems. As an engineer for mechanical contractors and as a consulting engineer for commercial, industrial, and educational clients, Mr. Saal’s past experience includes the analysis and design of HVAC and piping systems, on-site technical support of mechanical systems, energy auditing, and project and construction management.
Mr. Saal’s most recent work has included the advancement of high performance buildings and sustainable design with a specific emphasis on the design and analysis of large scale vertical and horizontal geoexchange systems.