Boise�s Mulvaney Medical Office Building recently earned a LEED-Gold certification based on the LEED for Core & Shell™ rating system from the U.S. Green Building Council. The three-story, 70,000-sq-ft building, owned by Cameron Investments and located on the Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center Campus, uses multiple sustainable strategies, including high-performance glazing, energy-efficient building envelope and lighting systems, water-efficient fixtures, durable and low-maintenance building materials, and non-toxic finishes and carpet. It was designed by Boise-based architectural firm CSHQA.

A 2,500-sq-ft vegetative roof garden is filled with drought-tolerant native and adapted plants, grasses, wildflowers, ground covers and trees.  Translucent skylights on the third floor and exterior shading devices on the west, east and south provide an energy savings of approximately 13%. 

Eighty-four percent of the construction waste was recycled locally, and 35% of construction materials were acquired within 500 miles of the project site. Sixty-four percent of the building materials contained recycled material, and 64% of wood products were harvested from FSC-certified forests.

The owner’s sustainable commitment extends to each tenant improvement development within the building.  Tenants are required, through their lease agreement with Cameron Investments, to use water-efficient fixtures, non-toxic materials and carpet, and energy-efficient strategies, including daylight harvesting, in their tenant improvements to contribute to the long-term sustainability of the project.

“Building operations are nearly 40% of the solution to the global climate change challenge,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair, U.S. Green Building Council.  “While climate change is a global problem, innovative companies like CSHQA and Cameron Investments are addressing it through local solutions.”

CSHQA was responsible for architecture, interiors, landscape architecture, mechanical, electrical, civil, structural, fire protection, communications and LEED coordination and documentation.