Allison Johnson, a sustainable design leader in HOK’s St. Louis studio, is collaborating with community leaders to prepare businesses and organizations for new building regulations.
St. Louis has joined the National Building Performance Standards (BPS) Coalition to support equitable building energy and climate policy. Comprised of 36 cities, counties and states, the Coalition aims to decarbonize America’s building sector by implementing building performance standards and other complementary policies in their jurisdictions. The new standards will regulate energy use in buildings 50,000 square feet or larger to improve energy efficiency and occupant health while addressing climate needs.
To support these initiatives, HOK’s St. Louis studio is partnering with Building Energy Exchange St. Louis to provide educational sessions in September and October for community stakeholders. The discussions will help architects, building owners, engineers, general contractors and tenant brokers understand the new regulations, the impact on their work and how they can efficiently implement changes to the built environment.
Johnson will join HOK’s Anica Landreneau, director of sustainable design, and Donovan Olliff, general counsel, for the sessions to explore how the new standards will affect contract language and the scope of a building project. The three sessions, hosted at HOK’s St. Louis office (10 S Broadway St Ste 200, St. Louis, MO 63102), will each have a unique focus:
- Part 1: Predesign, Sept. 21 at 4:30 PM
This session will address a project’s scope development and contract language. It will also explore how to set expectations with a client. - Part 2: Design, Oct. 5 at 4:30 PM
This session will discuss how to model and set energy targets for a project during design. The session will also explore how to define the project’s scope and manage execution. - Part 3: Construction Documentation and Administration, Oct. 19 at 4:30 PM
This session will review specification language, substitutions and RFI procedures, as well as project turnover, commissioning and post-occupancy considerations.
“Buildings are the No. 1 contributor in the U.S. to greenhouse gas emissions. In the city of St. Louis, buildings alone make up 80% of those greenhouse gas emissions,” said Johnson. “The new building performance standards will lead to a more sustainable future for our cities, improving building energy efficiency and electrification. We’re looking forward to working with clients to design greener, cleaner and healthier buildings in St. Louis and beyond.”
Registration for the educational sessions in St. Louis is available on Building Energy Exchange St. Louis’ website.
Questions about the sessions or wondering how we can help you prepare for these new building performance standards? Drop Allison Johnson a note at allison.johnson@hok.com.