We registered our school project (2 Buildings) as a Group Project under the LEED for School v2009 rating system.
The owner & operator are now talking about splitting the project into 2 phases
Phase 1 - Complete construction of the first building + half of the second building
Phase 2 - Construction of the remaining half of the second building
Phase 2 would be completed +/-2years after the Phase 1 completion (will make the LEED Certification a bit more complicated/longer... but still achievable).
My problem is that they recently came back to us stating the phases would be under 2 distinct construction contracts (which is completely against our recommendation). The owners is a semi-governmental authority and is only allowed to award construction contract up to a maximum price (and the 2 phases exceed that maximum). However, there is a great chance that they would awarded to the same contractor.
I found in the Group Project certification documentation that ''for design and construction projects, the buildings or spaces must be under the same construction contract''.
It looks pretty clear to me that going for a phasing group project with multiple construction contract would disqualify us from the LEED Certification... but I can't find any additional documentation to back this requirement in front of my client.
Also, what would be the situation if the project was a single building certification (not in a group project) to be constructed in 2 phases under 2 different construction contract? I could not find any mention of the ''must be under the same construction contract'' for the single project certification. Reading between the lines, my understanding is that a single building must be constructed under the same construction contract to be eligible for LEED Certification.
I am pretty sure I need the GBCI clarification on that, but your feedback would be much appreciated.
Jon Clifford
LEED-AP BD+CGREENSQUARE
LEEDuser Expert
326 thumbs up
November 27, 2015 - 4:30 pm
Nicolas—LEED Campus Guidance for Projects on a Shared Site requires all buildings in a Group to be “under the same construction contract,” but you may have some leeway. Here in the US, it is rare for a large, phased project to fall into a single contract. For example, my last big project had 6 buildings and dozens of construction contracts, but a single Construction Management (CM) company administered all the contracts on behalf of the Project Owner. This is a standard practice. I believe that, if you inquire, USGBC will accept this (or a similar approach) to allow your project to treat multiple contracts as one.
The Campus Guidance also requires all buildings in a Group to be “constructed at the same time.” This should not be much of an issue as long as Phase 2 starts construction soon after Phase 1 completion. However, the more time passes, the more difficult it could become to justify the phases as a single Group.
To your question concerning a phased single-building certification: The “Reasonable LEED Boundary” MRP allows buildings with “no physical connection” to qualify as one only under specific circumstances. Contact USGBC to see if your situation meets one of these exceptions.
Good luck. Phased construction introduces many new challenges. Let us know how your inquiries turn out.