Since this is the first time I need to submit an appeal, I would love some advice on the order of what needs to be done online and what I should expect.
LEED Online:
I haven't touched any of the buttons in the overview tab since our final review came in. I haven't uploaded any new documentation nor updated the forms. Should I begin by revising/updating credits forms, just as I would between a prelim and final review, and then hit the "enter appeal stage" button when all is ready to go? or vice versa? Is hitting the appeal button for when all is ready and I'm prepared to pay and promptly submit all appeals?
What to expect:
Now that we are entering the appeal phase (clarification first level appeal only), will it be the same reviewers or does an appeals board get involved where I should expect a much higher level of scrutiny? Is it recommended that I simply address the technical advice, or do I need to re-inspect everything? I've addressed cross credit compliance issues but found a few very minor errors not mentioned in reviewer comments that don't actually change calculation outcomes. I'm worried if I change something that wasn't brought up before, it might open an unnecessary can of worms. Is this the sort of thing that will cost our project an additional $800 because all will be examined by a broader group of reviewers? Or is just addressing the technical comments sufficient?
Any advice would be great. Thanks
Tyra Sorensen
21 thumbs up
June 12, 2013 - 12:57 pm
I understand your trepidation.
The Appeal button just opens the Appeal stage and allows you to add/delete/edit credits.
A new phase opens with a new Submit Appeal button, for when the ducks are in a row.
If you have specific questions, submit a request for feedback. We had a great call with a reviewer and now know what we missed before. If you had an outside reviewer, they will review it again, but it will also be reviewed by an inside reviewer.
The price is set by the credit or prereq, not the level of change.
Fees: http://www.usgbc.org/leed/certification/fees/overview#tab1 In most systems EAp1, EAp2, EAc1, EQp1 are the complex credits - full list is in the glossary (links from other places seem to be broken)
Kathy Wislocky
Project ManagerWilson Architects
2 thumbs up
June 12, 2013 - 1:47 pm
Tyra-
Thanks for the tips. How did you contact your reviewer? I've gotten general technical feedback through the GBCI "contact us" page, but it was not our project reviewer. A simple phone call could save an enormous amount of time and effort.
Elizabeth Thompson
Green Building SpecialistUSGBC/ GBCI
78 thumbs up
June 12, 2013 - 2:42 pm
Hi Kathy,
You are welcome to send the Customer Experience team any questions that you have through the Contact Us page (http://www.gbci.org/org-nav/contact/Contact-Us/Project-Certification-Que...). If you would like to schedule a call, we are glad to set that up. When you write to us, please include a list of your detailed questions so that we can ensure that we have the best people on the call to help.
We're glad to answer questions and set up calls between review phases as well to help project teams avoid appeals whenever possible.