Key Market Developments

1
Dale Mikkelsen City of Vancouver Central Area
Planning
2
Compact City, Compact Region
3
Sustainable Decisions

• sustainability has been expressed in Council
  decisions and policy for many years
• since the 1970s affordable housing policies
• 1990 Clouds of Change report
• 1991 Central Area Plan
• 1994 Solid Waste Management Plan
• 1995 CityPlan
• 1997 Vancouver Transportation Plan
• 1999 SEFC Policy Statement
• 2002 Downtown Transportation Plan

4
Living First in the downtown

• sustainability is a part of Vancouvers Living
  First strategy in the downtown
• in recent years Vancouver has doubled its
  downtown population from 40,000 to over 100,000
  residents
• by 2020, there are expected to be 120,000
  residents downtown, in neighbourhoods like False
  Creek North and Coal Harbour

5
Central Area Plan

• these downtown communities are
• liveable high-density neighbourhoods built on
  remediated brownfield sites
• close to transit and jobs
• complete communities that include commercial
  uses, community services, parks, child care
  centres, libraries and schools
• socially sustainable, with provisions for
  affordable and family-oriented housing

6
False Creek North
166 acres of land area 10,000 housing units
7
Coal Harbour
64 acres of land area 3,500 housing units
8
Southeast False Creek

• City Council issued a challenge to go even
  further - to create a community that is even more
  sustainable
• on the south shore of False Creek, develop a
  neighbourhood that is the model of
  sustainability, incorporating forward-thinking
  infrastructure strategic energy reduction
  high-performance buildings and high transit
  access

9
SEFC Policy Statement

• the SEFC Policy Statement was completed in 1999,
  and directed us to complete the following plans
• energy
• waste management
• water management
• urban agriculture
• sustainable transportation

10
SEFC Environmental Plans

• components of the plans to consider include
• energy
• ground source heating
• district heating
• alternative energy production
• waste management
• building material re-use
• 3-stream waste system
• on-site waste facilities
• composting

11
SEFC Environmental Plans

• water management
• green roofs
• water-wise landscapes
• on-site wastewater treatment facilities
• capture and reuse of storm water
• infiltration on site
• urban agriculture
• food production
• processing and distribution systems
• community gardening
• planting heritage varieties

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SEFC Environmental Plans

• sustainable transportation
• improved transit service and community transit
  pass
• transit-oriented development
• car-sharing service
• parking management and and traffic calming
• home delivery service
• pedestrian and bicycle improvements
• walking school bus
• all of the plans are complete and will be
  consolidated into one coherent vision for the site

13
SEFC Green Buildings

• the Policy Statement also directed us to create
  and implement guidelines for green buildings
• - if we considered all these elements, and didnt
  build green, we would fail in this community

14
Moving Toward Green Buildings

• in 2000, three levels of government joined forces
  to discuss LEEDtm and encouraging green
  buildings
• City of Vancouver
• Greater Vancouver Regional District
• Provincial Government
• The LEED BC Steering Committee was established
• The Steering Committee consulted with
• architects
• engineers
• the development community

15
Moving Toward Green Buildings

• response from the development community?
• LEEDtm should be voluntary, incentives are
  welcome, need more information on hard
  costs/benefits
• Green buildings are desirable and likely
  marketable
• Want to work with the City to shape a green
  building strategy for the city
• response from the general public, environmental
  groups, design industry?
• strong support for using LEED
• 3rd party verification reduces liability and
  eliminates potential for green washing

16
City of Vancouver -- First Steps

• City Council approved a process to consider
  LEEDtm for Southeast False Creek
• City Council asked staff to report back on the
  possibility of implementing a LEEDtm Silver
  rating standard on all new civic buildings
• City staff continued on-going work toward
  developing a green building strategy for
  Vancouver
• City staff engaged stakeholders within the design
  and development community, SEFC land owners, and
  SEFC stakeholder groups to establish directions

17
LEED BC Steering Committee

• to implement LEED in BC, we needed to regionalize
  LEEDtm
• we worked with other levels of govt. to produce
  the LEED BC Adaptation Guide
• Final draft submitted to USGBC and approved
• LEED BC was formally launched April 14, 2004
  fully operational and administered by the new
  CAGBC

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Why LEED?

• relatively simple to implement
• not overly prescriptive
• can be modified for local climate and standards
• has legitimacy and consistency
• has momentum, allowing benchmarking
• the use of LEEDtm is growing at a fast pace
  across North America
• the USGBC has over 2000 member organizations, and
  there are over 550 LEEDtm registered projects

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Momentum of LEED

• USGBC has grown from 250 members in 2000 to over
  3,000 members
• 14 registered projects in 2001 currently over
  1000 registered projects
• Over 30 projects registered in BC, compared to 6
  in 2002
• Over 250 LEED Accredited professionals in BC

20
North American Experience

• City of Portland Office of Sustainable
  Development, Green Rated Program, LEED Silver
  minimum for civic buildings
• City of Seattle LEED Silver minimum for civic
  buildings
• California San Jose, San Francisco, San Diego,
  Santa Monica, and Los Angeles have commitments to
  LEED of various levels Pleasanton requires all
  public and private buildings meet a minimum LEED
  Certified Standard

21
The Canadian and Local Experience

• Federal Government Public Works and Government
  Services have adopted LEED Gold as a minimum
  standard for all buildings over 10 million
• City of Calgary LEED rating system for all
  civic buildings by end of 2004
• City of Victoria LEED rating system for all
  civic buildings by end of 2004, DockSide
  development LEED Silver (mixed-use, commercial,
  industrial)
• GVRD June 27, 2003 GVRDs P E Committee
  adopted LEED as the primary tool in the region to
  promote green buildings

22
The Vancouver Experience

• Council policy and directions
• SEFC Policy Statement 1999
• National Works Yard LEED commitment 2001
• Mt. Pleasant Community Centre green building
  pilot 2002
• Preliminary work program to investigate LEED for
  civic and private developments 2002
• Corporate Climate Change Action Plan recommending
  LEED rating system or system for civic
  structures 2003
• Motion to develop a green roof policy as part of
  the development of a green building strategy 2004

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Myths of LEED

• Myth 1 LEED is a for-profit organization
  based in the United States. the USGBC is a
  not-for-profit organisation. The CAGBC now owns
  the exclusive license and rights to administer
  LEED in Canada and to revise and make
  modifications, local application guides, and
  interpretations as felt necessary without consent
  of the USGBC.
• Myth 2 LEED biases against wood products by
  requiring FSC Certification. --LEED does not
  exclude the use of wood products. Wood products
  can quality for 17 LEED points given design
  decisions. Only 1 point is based on FSC
  Certified wood.
• Myth 3 LEED is not designed for multi-unit
  residential housing. -- LEED Version 1.0, 2.0,
  and 2.1 all state that LEED is a measurement
  system designed for rating new and existing
  commercial, institutional, and high-rise
  residential buildings.

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Challenges of a Green Building Program

• To address the affordability of housing within
  the City of Vancouver in relation to real or
  perceived costs of green buildings.
• To work with the LEED BC Steering Committee to
  form a task group to examine medium and high
  density developments (which will include the
  development industry), but to date, no medium and
  high density development application guide
  exists.
• To facilitate and track demonstration and/or
  leadership projects within the SEFC model
  sustainable community to test and refine green
  building principles for implementation in the
  larger Vancouver context.
• To continue to work with the CAGBC and LEED BC
  to further adapt the Canadian LEED Adaptation
  guide to suit local conditions.
• To ensure that any green building system does not
  impact the quality of urban design represented in
  the city of Vancouver (e.g. the ability to
  economically develop high glass percentage
  residential towers).

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Benefits of a Green Building Program

• To lead by example and illustrate through
  practice the upfront capital costs that may be
  recaptured through reduced operating costs.
• To encourage water conservation, stormwater
  management and sustainable transportation.
• To encourage energy-efficient technologies and
  design approaches that significantly reduce
  operating costs, energy consumption and
  greenhouse gas emissions.
• To explore advances in renewable energy that stem
  resource depletion and greenhouse gas production.
  
• To encourage use of recycled-content products
  that reduce waste and greenhouse gas emissions.
• To support and utilize repairable, recyclable
  building materials.
• To encourage resource-efficient construction
  practices that conserve resources and generate
  less construction waste.
• To recognise that green buildings have emerged as
  a high priority in the Citys GHG reduction
  action areas.

26
SEFC Green Building Strategy
Premise

• Baseline environmental performance
• Medium and high density residential, mixed-use,
  commercial, institutional, and industrial
  developments
• LEED as a design tool
• LEED certifiable level of design no formal
  registration
• Additional requirements as identified through
  SEFC environmental reports and other Council
  adopted policy (GHG emissions, energy
  performance)
• Assurance taken as a condition of development
  permit
• Milestones or checkpoints throughout the
  development process (green building staff or
  project facilitators)
• Formal LEED registration is optional and
  identified at development permit if registered,
  then internal standard is waived

27
SEFC Green Building Strategy
Part 1 Mandatory Requirements

• Energy
• Minimum energy efficiency to meet ASHRAE 90.1
  2001
• Specify energy efficient appliances EnergyStar
  or gas (dryers exempt)
• Energy efficient lighting to follow ASHRAE 90.1
  2001.
• Specify fireplaces listed as a heating appliance
  with a minimum combustion efficiency to meet or
  exceed ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1 - 2001 heating
  appliance standards. Electric fireplaces must be
  100 percent efficient and offer heat/no heat
  modes.
• Heating of domestic hot water to be done with
  high efficient boilers with a minimum efficiency
  of 87.

28
SEFC Green Building Strategy
Part 1 Mandatory Requirements

• Parking
• Ensure that the minimum parking is reduced to 0.5
  spaces per dwelling unit for small units with a
  limitation to 1.0 required space per dwelling
  unit
• Designated visitor parking shall be separately
  required at a rate of 0.1 spaces per residential
  dwelling unit
• Ensure that a car-sharing or co-op vehicle,
  accompanied by a designated parking space, be
  provided for sites with 50 to 149 dwelling units,
  and a second car-sharing vehicle and space for
  sites with 150 or more units
• For future car-sharing, one additional designated
  parking space, be provided per 100 dwelling units

29
SEFC Green Building Strategy
Part 1 Mandatory Requirements

• Water
• Dual flush toilets.
• Low flow faucets and showerheads to meet current
  best practices.
• High efficiency irrigation system (drip
  irrigation), stormwater reuse for landscape
  irrigation, or no permanent irrigation.

30
SEFC Green Building Strategy
Part 1 Mandatory Requirements

• Waste Management
• 3 streams of waste collection (organics only if
  organic pick-up is available at time of
  development application).
• Management of construction and demolition waste,
  ensuring a minimum of 50 landfill diversion
  through construction process.

31
SEFC Green Building Strategy
Part 2 Towards a LEED Silver Certifiable
Building

• CAGBC adaptation to LEED 2.1 as the standard
  design tool
• LEED-BC Adaptation Guide to be utilised
• All points in all categories available
• - Sustainable Sites
• - Water Efficiency
• - Energy and Atmosphere
• - Materials and Resources
• - Indoor Environmental Quality
• - Innovation and Design Process
• (open only to previously awarded
• innovation points as identified by USGBC
• and CAGBC)
• Between 33 and 38 points must be achieved

32
Council Endorsed Policy

• 1. THAT Council adopt a minimum requirement of
  LEED Gold (including full registration and
  certification under LEED BC and the Canadian
  Green Building Council) for all new civic
  buildings greater than 500 square meters and
  that Council make the first 4 LEED points in the
  Energy and Atmosphere section mandatory to ensure
  a minimum of at least 30 energy reduction
• 2. THAT Council adopt a green building standard
  or system similar to the green building strategy
  presented in Appendix A of the Policy Report for
  the first rezoning sub-areas of the Southeast
  False Creek (SEFC) community, (to be refined and
  finalized prior to rezoning Public Hearing) with
  LEED Silver being the minimum design goal, with
  the intent to move toward achieving LEED Gold as
  a goal, both without formal certification under
  the LEED system, but with the intent to move as
  soon as possible toward formal registration and
  certification

33
Council Report Recommendations

• THAT Council approve a new temporary Planner 1
  position, with classification to be subject to
  review by the Director of Human Resources, at an
  annualized cost of 92,000 and the total cost of
  the positions tenure to be 150,000, with the
  2004 cost to be 58,000, to be funded from
  Contingency Reserve, and with the 2005 cost to be
  92,000, to be approved in advance of the 2005
  operating budget without offset
• 4. THAT Council approve new consulting, research,
  travel and related expenditures associated with
  the development and implementation of a new green
  building strategy, as laid out in Table 3 of
  Policy Report Developing a Green Building
  Strategy for the City of Vancouver, dated May 3,
  2004, of 12,000 in 2004, to be funded from
  Contingency Reserve, and of 38,000 in 2005, to
  be added to the 2005 operating budget without
  offset

34
Council Report Recommendations

1. THAT Council approve the work plan as set out in
   Policy Report Developing a Green Building
   Strategy for the City of Vancouver, dated May 3,
   2004, and instruct staff to investigate the
   development and implementation of a new green
   building strategy for private sector development
   using knowledge gained in SEFC to expand
   discussions with the development industry and
   other stakeholders to ensure the cooperative
   development of a green building strategy for new
   development in medium to high density residential
   zones, as well as commercial and industrial
   zones and to continue to promote events,
   research and publications which promote green
   building development and more sustainable
   thinking
2. THAT Council instruct staff to further develop a
   specific green roof policy as a part of the green
   building strategy

35
Council Report Recommendations

1. THAT Council instruct staff to continue work with
   the LEED BC Steering Committee and continue its
   involvement with the Canadian Green Building
   Council (CAGBC) to further develop green building
   standards for the Vancouver and Canadian context
   and to further development of a green building
   application guide for multi-unit residential
   dwellings (for possible formal adoption upon
   completion and stakeholder support)
2. THAT prior to recommendation of any green
   building strategy for the City of Vancouver
   beyond SEFC, Council instruct staff to report
   back on resolutions to outstanding issues
   identified over the work program period and
3. THAT Council ask staff to develop and report back
   on an interim strategy to address current,
   privately initiated green building applications
   outside of Southeast False Creek.

36
Work Program and Timing

• 18 month program beginning fall 04
• 1 dedicated Green Buildings Planner
• 1 support senior planner/manager
• Possibility of extension or redefinition post 18
  months to continue research, establish program,
  guide green building development

37

• City of Vancouver Green Building Program
• 2004/2005 Work Programme
• As of 2004-10-04

Work Program and Timing
Work Item Notes/Stakehold. Timing Product
Green building Review Group implementation policy, and operations Staff review group CBO, Dev. Services, Urban Design, Facilities, Rezoning Oct. 04 ongoing Continuous review/revision as necessary Information updates, memos, and bulletins
Interim green building strategy for voluntary developments and rezoning conditions CBO, Dev. Services, Urban Design, Rezoning Oct. 04 to Jan. 05 3 month process Report to Council estimated late Feb. 05
Analysis of LEED Commercial Interiors (CI) Planning, Facilities, Sustainability Group Commercial interior upgrades to municipal facilities cost/value to achieve LEED Gold Oct. 04 to Jan. 05 3 to 4 month process Possible Report to Council or Information Report estimated late Feb. 05
Formal LEED implementation tools for SEFC incl. LEED Core Shell analysis (CS) and/or pre-approval pilot Planning, Sustainability Group, Facilities, Real Estate Services, Engineering Services Private land-owners in SEFC CAGBC Oct. 04 to March 05 6 month process Report to Council estimated April 05
38
Work Program and Timing
Work Item Notes/Stakehold. Timing Product
Green Roof Strategy Planning, Social Planning (Food Policy), UBC Planning School (Scarp Masters candidate) Pending CMHC funding (25,000) for partnership UBC, COV, Sharpe Diamond Includes new construction and retrofit options Oct. 04 to March 05 5 to 6 month process to match SEFC ODP roll-out and private sector voluntary measures Report to Council as part of overall green building strategy Report estimated Feb. 06
Green building Review Group private sector implementation Private sector review group UDI, AIBC, APEGGBC, BOMA, NAIOP, GVHBA, and others Jan. 05 to Dec. 05 12 month process Information updates, memos, and bulletins as necessary
Energy Precinct/ Sustainability Precinct Planning, Sustainability Group, Engineering Services possibly led by Sustainability Group (Sean Pander) Stakeholder group to be defined Jan. 05 to Dec. 05 12 month process Report to Council Jan. 06
39

• City of Vancouver Green Building Program
• 2004/2005 Work Programme
• As of 2004-10-04

Work Program and Timing
Work Item Notes/Stakehold. Timing Product
Analysis of economic implications per bldg. type and performance goal (local models only) implications for economic develpmnt. Planning March 05 to Feb. 06 12 month process to follow new development post DP in the COV coincide with new energy by-law modelling initiative Information item added to overall green building strategy Report estimated Feb. 06
Draft City-wide green building strategy and phasing/roll-out Planning, Sustainability Group, CBO, Engineering Services, Dev. Services, Urban Design UDI, AIBC, APEGGBC, BOMA, NAIOP, GVHBA, and others Jan 05. to Feb. 06 13 month process Report to Council Feb. 06
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Green Buildings Reaching For a Better Tomorrow