The University of Notre Dame’s Geddes Hall has received LEED Gold Certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).
The 65,500-square-foot home of Notre Dame’s Center for Social Concerns and Institute for Church Life, Geddes Hall achieved all 42 LEED NC 2.2 credits originally sought at the outset of the building’s design.
The building opened in August 2009 and includes many sustainable design and construction features.
- A variety of materials made from both rapidly renewable materials and pre- and post-consumer recycled content were used throughout the building, including structural steel, insulation, bamboo and cork flooring, carpeting, ceiling tiles, concrete and gypsum drywall.
- Ninety-seven percent of construction waste was diverted from landfills, including the waste from the demolition of the original 7,000-square-foot former home of the Center for Social Concerns, previously located on the same site.
- The use of low-flow plumbing fixtures reduced water consumption by 45 percent.
- The landscape design minimizes grassed lawns while employing an irrigation system with new control technology and drip irrigation, techniques that reduced irrigation water consumption by 58 percent.
- Thirty-one percent of the building materials were manufactured within a 500-mile radius, thereby reducing the impact of transportation of building materials to the job site while supporting the regional economy.
- Showers were provided in the building to promote bicycle commuting to the building.
- The building is located on a previously-developed campus site within a one-half-mile radius of several amenities such as banking, restaurants, laundry and public transportation routes.
Geddes Hall is the first building to be LEED certified at Notre Dame. Other completed buildings pending final certification review by the USGBC include Ryan Hall, Stinson-Remick Hall, Purcell Pavilion and Innovation Park at Notre Dame. Buildings currently being designed that will eventually seek LEED certification at the conclusion of their construction include the new ice arena facilities, the Stayer Center for Executive Education, and new facilities for the Alliance for Catholic Education.
Contact: Doug Marsh, associate vice president and University architect, dmarsh@nd.edu