Refurbished Railroad Bridge for Pedestrian Use The design team for this project has developed a feature of the project that it plans to submit as an LEED Innovation Credit. The project will consist of a principal building on a 27-acre green space/waterfront park. On the site, is an abandoned 1,741 foot railroad bridge that was built in 1899, crossing the Arkansas River, connecting the south to the north. Over twenty years ago, control of the bridge was turned over to a railroad company that had no use for it and "mothballed" any plans for its future use. In 1995, the railroad company applied for a permit to demolish the bridge, but community leaders, including some that are involved with this project, were able to stop the demolition. As part of the scope of this project, the design team is refurbishing the railroad bridge and converting it to a pedestrian bridge. This is being done to allow for ADA accessibility over an elevated lift span segment of the bridge, which will be left in the raised position to comply with regulations for commercial river traffic. The insitu reuse of the bridge brings together several aspects of the project\'s sustainable design goals. To begin, it augments the embodied energy of the steel structure and piers. The bridge structure will be reused and some non-structural items will be recycled. It will also serve to reduce automobile use as it is a critical component of the cities\' plans to have this increased opportunity for social interaction developed in conjunction with mixture of green spaces, businesses, attractions, shops, restaurants and downtown living accommodations. The vision of the overall development is to create a downtown destination that requires no driving for tourists and locals alike. Because the Arkansas River separates the two downtown areas, pedestrian access across the river becomes crucial to these plans. The project team is aware that, in similar Credit Interpretations, the USGBC has determined that such actions as this should be applied to the Construction Waste Management Credit of the LEED Rating system. However, some existing structures were deconstructed and the site was delivered clear by the municipality to the design team before the goal of achieving LEED Certification was set. Although steps will be taken to reduce the amount of construction waste going to landfills, the project team has elected not to pursue the Construction Waste Management Credit. Therefore the project team feels that an Innovation Credit for the reuse of the Rock Island Railroad Bridge would be the most appropriate means of recognizing the sustainable aspects of this endeavor. With the understanding that the Credit Interpretation process can not \'pre-approve\' an Innovation Credit, the design team would like to know if the USGBC will consider this for an Innovation point and if so, what types of documentation would be necessary to submit in the LEED Application.
The strategy of the project team to retain and refurbish the railroad bridge for pedestrian use may qualify for an innovation credit; however, the degree to which retaining this bridge serves as an integral component of the project\'s scope and may provide significant benefits to the project\'s larger context will need to be clearly defined and documented. Further, the team must demonstrate this strategy\'s quantifiable benefits. Regarding the intent of LEED to reduce automobile usage, address the degree to which this strategy ties into the project\'s larger context in terms of public transportation. The inquiry alludes to the bridge as a crucial component of a vision that aspires to reduce automobile traffic by providing pedestrian access across the river in order to connect the two downtown areas. In order to demonstrate such benefits, USGBC highly recommends providing a transportation study. In the absence of such data, submit a detailed narrative that will help the reviewers ascertain whether this feature will likely have an impact on vehicular trip reductions between these two downtown areas and benefit the downtown vision as a whole. For example, how will pedestrians be encouraged to use this bridge in lieu of driving across the river? What businesses/services are located or planning to locate near the bridge? Will both ends of the bridge be served by public transit, and perhaps specialized transit that promotes the vibrant downtown/riverfront vision? What community events (existing or newly inspired) will benefit? How does the master plan for this bridge relate to existing pedestrian bridges in other cities that are proven success stories? Applicable internationally.