An area located at ground level that has a parking garage below (underground) should be considered landscape/hardscape or roof? And if the area below (underground) is occupied (e.g., a conference room) what should it be considered?

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Summer Minchew

Managing Partner

Ecoimpact Consulting

LEEDuser Expert

171 thumbs up

Thu, 12/21/2017 - 20:08

For an area at ground level that is part of your GSF; the area above it should be considered roof, the area below it should not be included in the calculations unless some portion of that cover is exposed to sky. I'm not sure if I totally follow your question with the underground parking garage and underground conference room, but I hope this helps.

Deborah Lucking

Director of Sustainability

Fentress Architects

LEEDuser Expert

224 thumbs up

Thu, 12/21/2017 - 22:29

If the "roof" of your underground structure is level with the surrounding grade and accessible to use, then it is non-roof; if it is paved, it is hardscape. If it is vegetated, it is "landscape". Any underground occupied spaces should be included for in your building gross floor area (GSF).
If there is any ambiguity, it's best to include an explanation of how you arrived at these classifications.

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