Dec 16 2009
Ontario Realty Corporation is proud to announce that Ontario will be home to one of North America's largest green building retrofit projects. Downtown Toronto's iconic 222 Jarvis Street, the former Sears Canada head office, will transform into a green, state-of-the-art workplace for the Ontario Public Service.
This retrofit is a tangible demonstration of the Ontario government's commitment to environmental leadership. The Government of Ontario is getting its own house in order by reducing energy consumption and incorporating the latest in green technology. Greening this Ontario government building will help create green jobs, build a sustainable workplace for the future and fuel a green economy. It is expected that this project will create just over 1,000 new jobs over its duration.
The design and retrofit of the 455,000 square foot building will adhere to the guidelines and sustainability principles of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED(R)) rating system, with a goal of achieving LEED(R) Gold standing. The design and construction team is comprised of WZMH Architects, CB Richard Ellis (Project Manager), and URBACON (Construction Manager).
The new Jarvis Street building will feature energy-efficient building design initiatives such as:
- A green roof and use of light coloured reflective roofing materials
that minimize cooling costs
- Photovoltaic solar rooftop panels
- Use of regional materials to reduce emissions from shipping resources
over long distances
- Use of low-emitting materials including adhesives, sealants, paints,
coatings and carpet, which reduce the emission of indoor air
pollutants
- Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and controls
upgrades
- State-of-the-art IT infrastructure including wireless infrastructure
to reduce the need to travel to meetings
- Daylight and occupancy sensors which optimize energy performance
- Power demand monitoring and reporting
- Rain water harvesting and re-use to reduce water usage and minimize
demand on municipal water and wastewater treatment facilities
- Grey water recovery to conserve fresh water supply
- Upgrades to the exterior of the building, including installation of
thermally-sealed windows
- Limited parking capacity, access to public transit, bicycle storage
and changing rooms to encourage use of alternative modes of
transportation
Source: http://www.ontariorealty.ca/site3.aspx