You may find, on a renovation of an existing building, that many interior elements, such as walls, ceilings and doors, are in perfectly good condition and do not need to be replaced. This credit awards you 1–2 points for refinishing and reusing 40%–60% of these elements. The calculation for this credit is a function of the total interior elements present upon construction completion, including both the existing and the new non-structural building components used in the project.

Building restoration may be labor-intensive, but reusing buildings and their interior components extends the life cycle of an existing structure and mitigates the impacts of extraction, manufacturing and transportation of raw materials when compared to new building construction. In addition to these environmental benefits, restoration often offers historic and cultural benefits.

There are calculators available for evaluating credit eligibility and targets. The most time-intensive aspects of documentation for this credit are getting accurate measurements of the area of nonstructural building elements and tabulating the existing and restored areas in the Interior Reuse calculator. When measuring, it is important to note the method you have used to account for existing building elements.

Use these questions to assess the potential for building reuse

• Conduct a survey of the existing building to ascertain the current condition. What are the probable costs of structural reinforcements, building restoration, and demolition of unusable areas?
• What is the cost of new construction if the whole building is demolished and replaced?
• Is the project eligible to pursue this LEED credit? Any new addition must be no more than twice the existing square footage that is retained.
• Would a renovation project be available for local historic incentives, or federal tax credits? Are there restrictions on demolishing the existing building and starting over?
• Which nonstructural elements are most feasible to maintain? What level of restoration will be needed for each element?