Somerset County High Performance Public Buildings Program Toolkit
The Somerset County High Performance Public Buildings Program (The Somerset County Program) was developed by the SCBP with assistance from the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) Center for Architecture and Building Science Research (CABSR). Funding for development of the Somerset County Program was provided by Johnson and Johnson, AT&T and HSBC.
The Somerset County Program was developed as a green building program that could be adopted by any of the Somerset County’s 21 municipalities, and is intended to apply to county, municipal and educational buildings. The Somerset County Program’s purpose is to create new public sector buildings that protect taxpayer investment by focusing on requirements that reduce building operating costs and increased user productivity. It also serves as a demystified path to high performance building. The program requirements are taken from the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design New Construction (LEED™ NC) rating system and incorporates requirements in the areas of: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources, and Indoor Environmental Quality. There are 18 requirements in all. Each program requirement was included to serve Somerset County’s pursuit of creating high performance buildings using the most essential, practical measures. The requirements balance cost effectiveness with optimal building performance and user health and productivity.
The Somerset County Program does not address site issues, beyond addressing soil erosion during construction. While site issues are critical to high performance buildings, they are also very project specific; for that reason, there are no requirements in this area. It is anticipated that any project participating in the Program would certainly consider site selection and site design strategies that enhance building performance.