LEED Certified or Certifiable?

Tristan,

Very well written. I continually run into the issue of "We are designing and building to LEED Standards" What it really means is we are not modeling, we are not commissioning, we are not verifying, we are not xy and z'ing. While I will not discount the fact that GBCI needs to really find a way to simplify the documentation, the additional "cost" for LEED certification is around 5 cents a square foot. This is such a miniscule amount of the design and construction budget as to be laughable.

Tristan's case and all the comments are well taken. But please note this is not a new phenomenon. We have been making this case for years since the inception of LEED. What is disturbing to us is that the need to do so seems to be increasing with knowledge and understanding of LEED rather than decreasing.

We are beginning to get push back from long established clients who have been through the LEED process enough to know that ever changing requirements and inconsistent review comments have significant cost impacts and are frankly demoralizing to all concerned.

It's very difficult to counter a loss in faith. And it's not just their faith that is at stake. We now find ourselves having to tell project teams that it may not matter whether they did the right thing for their occupants and the environment if they can't prove it to a reviewer's satisfaction. That's new for us and leaves a bitter taste.

Rather than focus on the certified vs. certifiable arguments that really haven't changed substantially over the years, we'd rather see a focus on what has changed - our sense that we can rely on our understanding of LEED requirements and their interpretation throughout the duration of any given construction project.

It is our confidence in LEED certification and what it means that lies at the hear of a successful defense of the process.

We find our most successful project teams (financially, environmentally and socially) are the ones who just commit to building LEED certification in their processes of design, development and construction. They say they simply build above code and can prove it through LEED certification. There is no discussion over this cost line item and then there is a lot less headaches and time is not wasted when that commitment is finally made and not burdened on the project or homeowners.

We work entirely with LEED for Homes and you have to remember that 3rd party verification is much more valuable than on the commercial side. On commercial you do not have a 3rd party green rater actually visiting and auditing the project as you do on Homes. With Homes you really have to prove it.

The Midrise cap on LEED for Homes has been removed and potentially all projects below 10 stories with residential square footage 50% or more may to comply with HOMES if seeking LEED.

What does this mean? Better 3rd party verification and value as well as improved indoor air quality for occupants as LEED NC nor EBOM do not go as far to ensure IEQ for living units.

Good points on a topic I hear about all the time.

From my perspective, LEED Certifiable, without actually certifying, is the worst of all possible worlds for the owner. They have almost all the expense of LEED certification but without the 3rd party assurance that certification provides to ensure they are actually achieving their goals and getting their money's worth, and without the brand recognition that comes with certification.

My experience leads me to agree with most of the sentiments expressed by Tristan and others above. From a longtime LEED user's standpoint, I can identify with Michelle R.'s comments above regarding a certain loss of faith: "...our sense that we can rely on our understanding of LEED requirements and their interpretation throughout the duration of any given construction project." But, on the other hand, I also think we might all benefit by more of Michele S.'s thinking in her comments above, focused on (1) the 'benefits' of LEED, rather than, or in relation to the [up front] 'costs' and (2), in the case of commercial developers, the costs of NOT moving towards LEED certification.

On that note, does anyone have any recent (post '07-'10) economic downturn) hard or anecdotal data ($/s.f. or % premuim or the like) on the leasing premium for LEED Silver vs. Gold vs. Platinum, with or without Green Leases,or similar financial benefits/ROI for LEED Certified Class A office space? Many thanks for sharing.

LEED Certifiable is the grass root reality. It is a dangerous trend but when almost all builders come from a mindset which leans more towards the high carbon, only for profit motive, it is to be expected. Some time back I had written an article which may find resonance with many LEED practitioners who chose this because they love this planet and people before profit. wp.me/p1xbzq-pI Green Buildings – How most of them are really made, the inside story.