Waterbury State Office Complex Earns LEED Platinum

The Waterbury State Office Complex—the largest project ever undertaken by the State of Vermont—has earned LEED Platinum! Goody Clancy completed an assessment and concept design for the historic hospital complex, which had been flooded by Tropical Storm Irene. As preservation architect to Freeman French Freeman, Goody Clancy was responsible for the renovation and adaptive reuse of over 100,000 SF of these 19^th-century buildings.

Jean Carroon, FAIA, LEED Fellow—Goody Clancy’s principal-in-charge for the project—is an advocate of creative building reuse and preservation. Her work at various National Historic Landmark buildings preserves natural resources and protects the legacies linked to these places.

To learn more about Jean’s unique perspective on sustainability and preservation, the full transcript of her Grassroots 2017 presentation for the American Institute of Architects (AIA) is available on the Historic Resources Committee’s site. Not only does Jean outline the sustainable advantages of reusing existing buildings, but she also discusses the unexpected social and economic impacts of renovation—like generating more jobs, conserving more sentimental stories linked to places, and hosting a higher percentage of women and minority-owned businesses than new construction.

Jean points out that existing buildings are ultimately the most sustainable option: “we have billions of square feet waiting to be transformed and to be renewed. When we do this, when we reuse what already exists, no matter how old or young the building is, we avoid the very substantial environmental impacts of replacing it with something new.”

Read the complete transcript of Jean’s presentation, appropriately titled “Old is the New…New,” here: http://bit.ly/2DlUxzl