The San Luis Obispo Chamber of Commerce has received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for commercial interiors for its facility at 895 Monterey St., becoming one of only two Chambers in the nation to receive this rigorous, third-party certification.
“Our Chamber has long been a leader in encouraging businesses to pursue sustainability measures and the triple bottom-line,” SLO Chamber President and CEO Ermina Karim said. “The steps we took to pursue LEED make long-term financial sense and allow our facility to model energy efficiency practices for small and large businesses.”
Developed by the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED certification is recognized worldwide as the premier mark of green building achievement. Only two other chambers of commerce in the US have received this designation, according to the U.S. Green Building Council website.
Chamber member Andrea Pease, principal of In Balance Green Consulting, worked with the Chamber before construction to develop a list of steps and requirements that would have to be met to receive certification.
Some of those requirements include reaching specific targets in water efficiency, energy use, material reuse and recycling, resource utilization and indoor environmental quality.
“One of the most important things was the location,” Pease said. “The reuse of the old building, the downtown location is convenient for walking… and the use of day light. It’s difficult in some of those old buildings to get natural light but they were able to arrange the space so that almost every area has natural light. That’s huge. It makes a big difference for the workspace environment and employee retention.”
The Chamber utilized transom windows and added solar light tubes to bring in natural daylight.
“The Chamber now has a building that costs a lot less to operate and is healthier for employees and visitors and has a much smaller footprint,” Pease said.
A grant provided to Leadership San Luis Obispo, an independent program of the SLO Chamber, from Pacific Gas & Electric Co. helped finance the improvements.
“Thanks to PG&E we were able to meet our goals of having a beautiful energy efficient building that houses the Leadership program and can be used as a platform to educate business owners and visitors on cost-effective green business practices,” Leadership SLO Board Chair Dawna Davies said.
Complementing the efficiency gains and green elements of LEED certification, the Chamber constructed an educational component to showcase some practical and measurable green building design, construction and operational solutions. This display is prominently featured in the Visitor Center.