Schematic Design

Outdoor air can contain contaminants that lead to unhealthy working or living conditions. You may need to assess the quality of the local outdoor air before bringing it indoors. HHigh efficiency MERV filters (13 or higher) are one solution to treating poor-quality outdoor air before supplying it to the indoors.

Determine the best ventilation strategy for your building: natural, mechanical, or mixed-mode ventilation. The choice of ventilation system is more likely to be shaped by the LEED minimum ventilation prerequisite (EQp1) and increased ventilation credit (EQc2), not this credit.

Using 0.5 gpm lavatory faucets is a cheap and easy way to help earn the majority of your water use reduction points.

Run preliminary water use calculations to establish the baseline water use and confirm goals for water-use reduction. This should include clearly identifying target flow and flush rates for fixtures. 


This credit only includes core water uses—bathroom sinks, toilets, urinals, showers, and kitchen faucets.

Determine the number of parking spaces needed for your project. Fifty percent or more of those need to be under cover—underground, under deck, under roof, or under the building. Parking roofs must have an

You cannot count shading cast from the building itself, as your project building does not cover non-building hardscape area from an aerial view. 

Consider shading parking with solar PV panels or architectural structures with

Determine which of the two options for residential projects is most appropriate:

• Option 3: Do not exceed minimum zoning requirements for parking capacity, and provide infrastructure and programs to encourage carpooling and vanpooling.
• Option 4: Provide no new parking.

Residential Projects