The new Monroe County campus for Northampton Community
College has garnered a citation for its sustainability and site planning.
The Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter of the American
Institute for Architects this month honored the college and its design team for
building the Monroe campus to Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design-gold standards.
On an 80-acre tract near the center of Monroe County in
Tannersville, the campus opened in August and has won praise from students and
faculty as well as from professional architects for its LEED design (a green
building certification program that recognizes best-in-class building
strategies and practices).
The green construction of the 200,000-square-foot,
three-building campus includes solar photovoltaic panels, central geothermal
heating and cooling system and high efficiency heating, cooling and lighting
systems.
The design will reduce annual energy consumption by 80
percent compared to traditional construction, and the solar system will produce
43 percent of the electricity needed throughout the year, according to college
officials.
“Our hope going forward is that it will be a learning
laboratory for students and for others who want to learn more about green
construction,” said Mark Culp, a professional engineer and LEED-accredited
professional and NCC’s director of buildings and grounds.
The campus was designed by MKSD Architects in South
Whitehall Township. Silvia Hoffman, a principal at the firm, said the citation
from the Eastern Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Institute for Architects
meant a lot because sustainability and creating an environment conducive to
student success were priorities for NCC.
Other firms involved in the campus’s construction were
D’Huy Engineering of Bethlehem, Strunk-Albert Engineering of East Stroudsburg,
Herbert, Rowland & Grubic of Harrisburg and Derck & Edson Associates of
Lititz.
Source: LVB.com
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