In addition to providing 5% of the total parking capacity of the site for preferred parking for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles, schools must make provisions for a minimum of one designated carpool drop-off area for these vehicles. Make sure it’s conveniently located.
If designating parking spaces is not desirable, the credit can be achieved by providing a discounted parking rate of at least 20% for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles.
Alternatively, if the LEED boundary includes a multi-story garage that serves multiple buildings in addition to the LEED project, all the parking spaces within the LEED boundary must be included for calculations even if only a portion of the parking area is expected to be for the project building’s use.
Calculations should be based on any parking spaces within the LEED project boundary. If some of the parking associated with the building is onsite and some is off-site, confirm the appropriate approach with
Calculations should be based on the parking spaces associated with the building pursuing LEED certification plus any additional parking included in the LEED boundary. Options 1 and 2 relate to total parking spaces included onsite within the LEED boundary while Options 3 and 4 relate to vehicles for project occupants. If parking for the building is offsite, it must be included in credit calculations. If some of the parking is onsite and some offsite, confirm the appropriate approach to the situation with
Calculate the total vehicle parking capacity of the site and allocate 5% of it for preferred parking spaces for low-emitting and fuel-efficient vehicles.
Since there are no “LEED police” to check compliance with parking rules after a project’s completion, it is the project owner’s responsibility to meet the intent of the credit throughout the operations phase using the honor system. Some owners choose to screen occupants’ cars and distribute stickers to those that are allowed to park in designated preferred-parking spaces.
Some past projects have been able to designate preferred parking spaces in off-site parking areas attributed to the project that were not within the LEED scope or boundary, as long as they were within one-quarter mile of the project's main entrance or serviced by a shuttle. These preferred spaces had to be reserved for LEED project building occupants only. Project teams with similar circumstances need to consult with GBCI to see if taking a similar approach is allowed.
