Oakland University's Oak View Hall gets LEED Gold certification for green building

ROCHESTER, Mich. - July 24, 2015 - PRLog -- Oak View Hall, Oakland University’s newest 500-bed student housing complex, recently struck gold in green building certification.

Oak View Hall’s unique architecture and design has captured LEED, or Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, Gold certification status.

To reach LEED status from the U.S. Green Building Council, building projects have to earn points based on their ability to save money and resources and have a positive impact on its residents, while promoting renewable, clean energy, according to the building council.

Oak View was awarded 63 points in green energy building categories such as sustainability, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation and design process. Only Platinum certification is higher than Gold, which is between 60 and 79 points out of 100.

Oak View, which offers bike racks, preferred parking for low-emission vehicles and shielded light fixtures, hit many green building requirements that helped it achieve its LEED Gold status. It also features dual-flush toilets, low-flow bathroom fixtures and showerheads, and an enhanced refrigerant management system that consumes 18 percent less energy than a typical dorm building.

The building’s project managers also thought green during the construction process, recycling more than 95 percent of the construction waste generated by the project and using about 15 percent of recycled materials. Twenty percent of the construction materials were sourced regionally, as well.

The student hall has also received the Masonry Institute of Michigan's President Award for its use of masonry throughout.

The 164,724 square-foot, $30 million facility was officially opened in August 2014. University officials broke ground on the project in 2013. The residence hall was constructed due to a nearly 40 percent increase in housing rental agreements in the previous four years.