Consider this credit, and the reduction of parking capacity, before negotiating your lease. It is helpful to research zoning requirements for any building you are considering leasing.

You will need to confirm with the building owner that the lease does not guarantee more parking spaces than the number required by code.

Consider selecting a site that is conducive to this credit as well as to SSc3.1 and SSc3.2—one with good access for alternative transportation, including public transit and good bicycle and pedestrian access.

It is optional for projects to value reused or salvaged materials at their replacement cost for the LEED calculation. For example, whether a project purchased or received a donation of decorative ceiling tiles, the material value would be the same as what it would cost to replace the donated materials with something new. Of course, it may also be beneficial to use the actual salvage price, when it is higher than the new material replacement cost; a good example is antique woodwork.

Look at your baseline materials budget to determine how much reused material you need to incorporate into your project. Decide how much you want to spend on reused materials and establish what reused materials are available. To earn one point, allocate 5% of your materials budget. Identify the items in your preliminary budget that could be donated, reused, or salvaged. Do these items add up to the amount needed to get one LEED point?  

Look at your baseline materials budget to determine how much reused material you need to incorporate into your project. Decide how much you want to spend on reused materials, and establish what reused materials are available. To gain one point, devote 5% of the materials budget to reused materials; for two points, allocate 10%. Identify donated, reused, or purchased items in the project’s preliminary budget that could be salvaged materials. Do these items add up to the amount needed to get one or two points?  

How do you decide whether to use the actual or the default materials budget as your baseline? The lower you can get the baseline, the easier it is to purchase enough reused material to reach the credit threshold. For example, if a project is renovating an existing building that will have low material costs and high labor costs, it may be better to use the actual rather than the default approach, because the 45% default may bring the baseline too high.

Drawing up the default budget is less time-consuming because the contractor does not have to break out materials versus labor costs, allowing the project to focus on tracking only the materials that contribute to LEED credits. However, this option may put the project at a disadvantage if the materials cost is actually less than 45% of the total cost, in which case you would get credit for less than the full cost value of your materials. 

Adding Division 12: Furniture to your baseline materials budget for MRc3 is optional, but must be applied consistently (either included or excluded in every case) across MRc3–7. Analyze your baseline materials budget to see if adding Division 12: furniture works to your project’s advantage. Generally, if the furniture helps contribute to the above MR credits, it is in a project’s interest to take credit for it.

Analyze the initial cost budget to know what materials the project can target and incorporate the LEED requirements accordingly into construction specs for the specific materials. The contractor will appreciate not filling out forms for materials that are not reused, or that have so little cost value that it is a waste of time.