LEED Certified
Parker called the chance to work with his friend on a LEED building "a great opportunity." He said the LEED program is "a lot of extra paper work and documentation," but added, "we knew that going into it." A few of the building's features include designated parking spaces for hybrid cars, paneling from trees that formerly occupied the site and shelving below windows to utilize natural light. For builder, architect and occupant, obtaining LEED certification required extra meetings, research, paperwork and costs. Applicants must document how much of their building's material they divert from landfills, for example, and they must prove how much of it comes from regional sources. The $3.9 million, 18,000-square-foot structure was finished in June of 2008 and received the certification in March of the following year.