Chapter 3-19 — GREEN BUILDING REQUIREMENTS FOR CITY BUILDING PROJECTS

Article 1 General(Legislative History: Ordinance No. 2008-007, 5/19/08 (Sections 3-19-100—3-19-110))

To promote economic and environmental health in the City, it is essential that the City itself, through the design, construction, operation and deconstruction of its own facilities and facilities it funds, provide leadership to both the private and public sectors by incorporating green building practices. The most immediate and meaningful way to do this is to require the integration of green building strategies in City buildings.

(a) The City finds that the design, construction, and maintenance of buildings within the City can have a significant impact on the City's environmental sustainability, resource usage and efficiency, waste management, and the health and productivity of residents, workers, and visitors to the City.

(b) The City finds, based on studies by Alameda County Waste Management Authority
(StopWaste.Org), that construction and demolition debris comprise a substantial portion of
materials disposed in Alameda County landfills.

(c) The City finds that green building, construction, operation and maintenance can have a
significant positive effect on energy, water and resource efficiency, waste and pollution
generation, and the health and productivity of a property's occupants over the life of the
building.

(d) The City finds that green building design contributes to a reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions, improves air quality and enhances urban sustainability.

(e) The City finds that green building benefits are spread throughout the systems and features
of the building, the larger San Francisco Bay Area ecosystem and the community. Green
buildings use recycled-content materials, consume less energy and water, have better
indoor air quality, and use fewer natural resources than conventional buildings.
Construction waste is often recycled and remanufactured into other building products.

(f) The City finds that green building design and construction decisions made by the City in
the construction and remodeling of City buildings can result in significant cost savings to
the City over the life of the projects.

(g) The City finds that it is critical to both the economic and environmental health of the City
that the City provides leadership to both the private and public sectors in the area of green
building.

(h) The most immediate and meaningful way to do so is to include green building elements in
City projects, and to encourage private projects to include green building elements.

(i) Green building design, construction, operations and maintenance techniques have been increasingly adopted in residential and commercial building construction.

(j) At the national level, the U.S. Green Building Council has taken the lead in promoting and
defining commercial green building by developing the Leadership in Energy and
Environmental Design (LEED)™ Rating System.

(k) Requiring City Projects to incorporate LEED™ is necessary and appropriate to achieving the benefits of green building in the City.

"Building" means any structure used for support or shelter of any use or occupancy. "Building" includes structures of occupied space, as defined by the California Building Code.

"City project" means any new construction or renovation of a building owned or occupied by a City department or agency.

"Covered project" means all new building or renovation projects that equal or exceed Three Million Dollars ($3,000,000.00) in construction costs, adjusted annually to the Building Cost Index published in the Engineering News-Record Magazine, and are owned or occupied by a City department or agency.

"Green Building Compliance Official" means the designated staff person(s) with the requisite green building training and accreditations that are authorized and responsible for implementing this Chapter.

"Initiated" means officially identified and substantially funded to offset the costs associated with the project.

"LEED™ Rating System" means the most recent version of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED™) Green Building Rating System approved by the United States Green Building Council. City staff shall maintain the most recent version of the LEED™ Rating System at all times.

"LEED™ Accredited Professional" means an individual who has passed the LEED™ accreditation exam administered by the United States Green Building Council.

"Renovation" means any addition or modification to an existing building or structure.

"Structure" means a building and excludes traditional public works projects.

"Traditional public works project" means heavy construction projects such as pump stations, sewerrelated facilities, flood control improvements, roads, and bridges, as well as traffic lights, sidewalks, bike paths, bus stops, and associated infrastructure on City owned and maintained property.

Article 2

Standard for Compliance(Legislative History: Ordinance No. 2008-007, 5/19/08 (Sections 3-19-200, 3-19-205))

All covered projects initiated on or after the effective date of this ordinance, shall meet a LEED™ Silver Rating and be so certified by the United States Green Building Council. Prior to the design process, the City Manager may designate a covered project as needing to meet a higher LEED™ rating. All covered projects shall also have a LEED™ Accredited Professional as a principal member of the design team from the beginning of the project.

For the purposes of reducing operating and maintenance costs in all City facilities, projects that do not meet the threshold that triggers compliance with the requirements of this Chapter should meet as many LEED™ credits as practicable. Public Works and Engineering and Transportation Departments should regularly review the project specifications used in bidding traditional public works projects to include the best green building/environmental practices possible.

Article 3

Promulgation of Implementing Regulations(Legislative History: Ordinance No. 2008-007, 5/ 19/08 (Sections 3-19-300, 3-19-305))

The City Manager shall, within six months of ordinance adoption, promulgate any rules and regulations necessary or appropriate to achieve compliance with the requirements of this Chapter. The initial rules and regulations shall be promulgated after securing and reviewing comments from affected City agencies and departments.

The rules and regulations promulgated by the City Manager's office under this Chapter shall provide for at least the following:

(a) The incorporation of the green building requirements of this Chapter into the appropriate design, construction, maintenance and development agreement documents prepared for the applicable covered projects.

(b) The designation of an appropriate Green Building Compliance Official(s) who shall have the responsibility to administer and monitor compliance with the green building requirements set forth in this Chapter and with any rules or regulations promulgated thereunder, and to grant waivers or exemptions from the requirements of this Chapter, and to report to the City Manager regarding green building compliance on all covered projects.

(c) For Cities with an adopted Environmental Purchasing Policy (EPP), the Green Building Compliance Official(s) will coordinate activities with the person(s) responsible for implementation of the EPP.

Article 4

Unusual Circumstances(Legislative History: Ordinance No. 2008-007, 5/19/08 (Section 3-19-400))

Compliance with the provisions of this Chapter may be waived in unusual circumstances where the City Council has, by resolution, found and determined that the public interest would not be served by complying with such provisions.