WCSU arts center earns LEED designation

The new Visual and Performing Arts Center at WCSU in Danbury.

The $97 million Visual and Performing Arts Center at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, which opened in September, has been certified as LEED Silver by the U.S. Green Buildings Council, signifying the facility is energy efficient and was built in a way that conserves resources.

LEED stands for leadership in energy and environmental design.

Architects and administrators involved in the project planned for LEED certification from the beginning of design through the two years of construction, even adjusting campus smoking rules to address the environmental policies of the certifying agency, the school reported in a press release.

“This designation confirms Western”™s commitment to environmental responsibility,” WCSU President James W. Schmotter said in the press release. “Our new Visual and Performing Arts Center epitomizes creativity not only in the work of our faculty and students, but also in architectural design and in the management of the university”™s carbon footprint.”

Peter Visentin, WCSU director of planning and engineering, said criteria used to achieve LEED Silver status at the center included water and energy efficiency, indoor air quality, energy use and the use of recycled or sustainable building materials. The effort leads to a 20 percent reduction in energy use compared with a similar-sized building built without LEED guidance.

“The process requires you to put together a puzzle that is cost-effective and energy efficient,” Visentin said in the press release. “On a university campus everyone comes with a different perspective. The facilities people are thinking about maintenance; the faculty wants the best teaching facility. So consensus-building is the most important thing. Over the years you develop a sense of what needs to come first in the planning process and get everyone to agree with the steps in the project.”

Luigi Marcone, WCSU interim associate vice president for facilities, said, “This is an example of what we achieve as a 21st-century campus committed to providing a state-of-the-art teaching and learning environment, while continuing to focus our attention on minimizing the footprint we leave behind on the greater community.”

The building is the third at WCSU to receive LEED certification. The Science Building is LEED Silver and Centennial Hall, a residence hall, received the basic LEED certification.