Serrano Sustainability Features
Serrano is the first multi-family residential building in the San Fernando Valley to be awarded the LEED Silver certification by the U.S. Green Building Council for achievement in green homebuilding. The United States Green Building Council's LEED Green Building Rating System has been adopted by the City as the basis of design for all of its new construction. What is LEED? LEED is an internationally recognized certification program that measure how well a building or community performs with energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.
As a green building, Serrano offers many benefits, including environmental protection, economic advantages, and health and safety benefits, while providing an inviting, friendly and comfortable place for all tenants and visitors. Serrano's underground parking is sustainable because it eliminates large, paved surfaces exposed to sunlight. In addition, the building's roof over the commercial structure is vegetative which insulates the building helping to reduce the usage of HVAC.
Sustainable Site Planning:
- The building was designed to collect the rainwater that falls on the site and infiltrate that water back into the ground to reduce the amount of runoff that is diverted into the street gutter system.
- Also a trench drain, not far away from the catch basin, designed to act as an "overflow" drain for the catch basin and to prevent water flow onto the on-structure parking.
Water Efficiency:
- The plants and trees surrounding Serrano were chosen because they lend themselves to water conservation.
- Low-flow restroom faucets and toilets conserve water.
- All residential water faucets are "Life Source" http://www.lifesourcewater.com/ the water is clean and filtered for drinking, cooking, etc.
Energy and Atmosphere:
- Energy Star Appliances: Refrigerators, Dishwashers and Clothes Washers.
- HVAC with non-HCFC refrigerant installed.
Materials and Resources:
- More than 78% of Waste Material during construction was recycled.
- No tropical wood was used.
Indoor Environmental Quality:
- The Serrano Apartments employ the AquaTherm System in order to provide heat for the units. This system uses hot water from the water heater to heat the air forced out by the fan coil. There is a return piping line from the fan coil to the water heater to reheat the water used by the fan coil.
- Carbon monoxide monitors were installed in the center of the common corridor for the units, one per floor. The central location will aid in detecting carbon monoxide quickly, and also be able to alert the tenants quickly.
- There are no fireplaces or woodstoves in the Serrano Apartments.
- The garage is also equipped with an extensive carbon monoxide detection system.
Awareness and Education:
- Operations and maintenance binder created for Tenants (including what measures we completed to become LEED Certified and what materials were used i.e. paint, etc.) These binders show what we achieved in the rating system and they will also make sure that LEED strategies are preserved in the building.