Sweetwater Visitors Center: Sweet Platinum Status

By Debra Wood

They were aiming for silver, but designers of the Sweetwater Creek Visitors Center in Lithia Springs, Ga., brought home platinum, the highest level of certification in the LEED green building rating system.

"My goal was to push the envelope and see how much we could get out of the process, within the budget," says Dan Gerding, managing principal of Gerding Collaborative of Atlanta, the project architect. "We just kept raising the bar. As the building was under construction, it became apparent we had a shot at platinum."

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, recognizing the link between green building and its mission of protecting the state's resources, sought an environmentally friendly design. Gerding collaborated with owners, the volunteer group that supports the visitors center, engineers and other team members throughout the process. He credits their inventive ideas with helping to bring to Georgia the Southeast's first platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

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The $1.5 million, 8,743-sq-ft visitors center requires 77% less water than a comparable building and consumes 51% less energy. Photovoltaic solar panels produce approximately 20% of the building's electric needs. A vegetative roof helps capture stormwater and decrease runoff, and it also avoids heat absorption.

The building sits on a long east-west access, set into a hillside with three sides below grade. Glass windows complete with shielding devices to avoid overheating allow natural light to enter the exhibit area. Photocells monitor the daylight and turn lighting fixtures on or off accordingly.

Gerding considers a water-harvesting system and a composting toilet system two of the most interesting green features. A rooftop cistern collects most of the water used for hand washing. A system filters and treats the water before use. A drip irrigation system combines nitrogen-rich liquid from the composting bins with the building's greywater to irrigate and fertilize a garden area.

"The composting system was more expensive than traditional restrooms, but we prioritized expenditure of dollars in certain areas and were economical in others," says Gerding, adding that the design called for readily available interior and exterior finishes. "In this project, we all felt letting it be an educational tool to the general public about environmental stewardship was a paramount goal."

An exhibit in the interpretive center explains the sustainable features and lets visitors monitor the building's systems, such as how much water is in the cistern. The project was completed for $175 per sq ft.

Owner: Georgia Department of Natural Resources
Architect: Gerding Collaborative LLC, Atlanta
General Contractor: Mooney Construction, Woodstock, Ga.