White City Elementary School- 2830 Maple Court, White City, OR 97503

Completed: 2004
Size: 42,000 SF
Services:Competitive Bid General Contracting
Facility Category:  School

This new school constructed in 2004 serves as a case study for sustainability and energy efficiency in Oregon.

Some of the measures incorporated into the design included the following:

The school uses daylighting extensively. Daylighting is the controlled admission of natural light into a space through windows, skylights, or roof monitors.

Sunshades are installed on the outside of the South side of the building to prevent excessive heat gain.

The school equipped classrooms with fluorescent lighting fixtures with T-5 lamps and energy efficient ballasts. All lights have occupancy sensors that are estimated to reduce lighting usage by 30 percent.

Classroom windows are operable allowing for natural ventilation.

Two central, natural gas-fired boilers heat the hot water for the school. They have thermal efficiencies of 88 percent compared to the code standard efficiency of 80 percent.

Nearly all of the waste generated during construction was recycled.

The school has low or no-VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) paints, varnishes, adhesives etc. that can be harmful to health.

The plantings are drought resistant species.

There is a drip irrigation system that can be used sparingly once plants are established.

Water is stored and pre-cooled in three underground tanks before it goes to the chiller so the chiller
doesn’t have to operate as long or as frequently.

A bioswale and pond system in the hillside behind the school holds and filters rain run-off before it
enters the city storm system. The area is planted with native vegetation and does not require irrigation
or maintenance. The ponds resemble dry lake beds that fill with rain water that is then gradually
released to the storm system.

A bicycle parking area is big enough for 95 percent of children if they ride bikes to school.

The school “envelope” (floor, walls and ceiling) has excellent insulation. Part of the building is actually built into the hillside.

Low-flow plumbing fixtures; timed water faucets that turn off automatically.

Multi-purpose areas. The music room can be used as a community room; the gym and cafeteria have
a stage in between that can be accessed from either side; three special education rooms can be opened
to make one big room when required. The gym, cafeteria, and community room have a separate entrance so they can be opened for evening and weekend events without accessing other parts of the building, which saves on heating & lighting needs.

From the Eagle Rock Case Study (a matching sister school)