Greenie Only!

There is a large development taking place in Syracuse, NY called Destiny USA. One thing of interest is that the developer is promoting 100% sustainable development and building. The sign (below) secures parking spaces for green vehicles only. Not sure if it is being enforced or not yet...The following are some of the sustainable features:

Sustainable Features Destiny USA’s First LEED Platinum Hotel

• Destiny USA is rehabilitating the contaminated soil that was left when “Oil City” was removed. By cleaning up and developing the hotel on this site called a “brownfield”, Destiny USA reduces the need to use other precious undeveloped land. By building the hotel on the existing land of the Carousel Center site, Destiny USA is encouraging urban development which protects our greenfields, preserves habitat and natural resources.
• The building façade will be clad t with 400,000 sq. ft. of solar panels that would produce an additional 1.9 million KWH/Yr (2,200 KW). Using current electricity cost in NYS of $.14/KWH the energy cost savings would be $266,000 per year.
• The hotel roof will be covered with 20,000 square feet of photovoltaic panels that will produce 24,000 KWH (16 KW).
• A freestanding 23 MW Biomass Gasification Power Plant will utilize agricultural waste and solid waste from the hotel to produce electricity, steam and chilled water. The plant will run a turbine and fuel cells that will power the entire facility.
• The hotel will capture and utilize as much storm-water as possible to be recycled for gray water use throughout the facility. Uses for gray water include toilet flushing, cooling tower makeup, irrigation, laundry, maintenance and evaporative roof cooling.
• The hotel design will incorporate small hydroelectric turbines which will generate electricity from rainwater run-off.
• A high density of buildings with black roofs can cause an ecological imbalance called a “heat island” which can increase the temperature in that area. The hotel roof will be covered with a solar reflective material that greatly reduced any potential for increased temperature change. Porous concrete paving will also be used in the reworked site around the hotel to reduce heat island effects and allow natural absorption of storm-water.
• Each guest room within the hotel incorporates a hydronic vertical fan coil unit. The heating and cooling options exist within this unit to quickly control the room temperature upon the guest’s arrival. A high output ultraviolet light in each fan coil unit combats mold and mildew and other organic matter which greatly reduces coil pressures and provides a minimum energy savings of 8% per year.
• During construction 95% of all construction debris will be diverted from going to a landfill. To accomplish this goal, waste materials will either be reused on-site or hauled to specified recycling facilities. The industry average for diverting construction debris from a landfill is 30%-40%.
• The hotel will have secure bicycle storage and shower and changing facilities to encourage both guests and employees to use alternate transportation.
• Preferred parking spaces will be offered for guests who drive fuel efficient and low emitting vehicles.
• Low flow fixtures including showers and toilets will be specified to significantly reduce water demands.
• The landscaping planned for the expansion will consist of a plants and trees well suited for this climate, thus eliminating the need for irrigation and future water use from any source.
• More than 20% of the materials used in the hotel will be from recycled sources and 2.5% of the materials will be rapidly renewable.
• A Construction Indoor Air Quality Management Plan will be implemented to help sustain the comfort and well-being of the construction workers and the building occupants by reducing or preventing the presence of dust, air pollutants, odor and moisture.
• All adhesives, paints, carpeting and composite wood will have low or no VOC (Volatile Organic Chemical) emissions which are odorous, irritating and/or harmful to the installers and occupants of the building.
• More than 20% of the materials will be sourced regionally to reduce greenhouse gases from transportation and shipping.
• 50% of all the new wood used will be Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified. FSC wood meets a specific criterion that proves it was produced in a sustainable manner.
• Small wind turbines will be incorporated into the hotel structure – Potential to utilize 15m wind turbines (50 KW rated, 10 KW at 12 mph).
• 100% recycling will occur during operations.
• In façade lighting high efficiency LED lighting will be specified to control light pollution and conserve energy. The lights will also be turned off after a certain time in the evening to conserve energy.

Additional Elements Being Researched:

• An off-site wind farm will power Destiny’s fleet of electric vehicles.
• Effluent from the Metro sewage treatment plant could be used in addition to stormwater run-off to supplement the gray-water demands for flushing toilets, cooling tower makeup, irrigation, laundry, maintenance and evaporative roof cooling.
• Use wheatgrass carpeting instead of oil based conventional carpeting.
• On premises laundry with water recycle, heat recovery, and ozone technology with 30% water savings and 25% energy savings during operation.
• Solar panels will be directly connected to hotel cooling system actually cooling the areas that the sun heats, reducing peak load demands.