The Water Council is thrilled to announce that our Global Water Center, at 247 W. Freshwater Way, Milwaukee, has been awarded LEED® Silver certification.
Highlights of the project include a vegetated roofing research laboratory (green roof), consisting of 11 different vegetative roofing prototypes that will be utilized by UW-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences to determine water holding capacity, reduction in storm surge capabilities, evapotranspiration, and more. Additional features, by the numbers, that helped obtain the Silver certification were: 94% of the building was salvaged and reused, including the foundation, structural roof deck, exterior and interior walls, and interior slabs; 16% of materials used during construction contained post-consumer recycled materials; potable water was reduced by 39% through the installation of low flow plumbing fixtures; and 84% of construction waste, 348.3 tons, were diverted from landfills and incineration facilities.
Located in Milwaukee’s bustling Historic Walker’s Point Neighborhood, another important factor was community connectivity. The Global Water Center is easily walk-able to neighborhood eateries, businesses, schools and parks. The extension of Freshwater Way West into Reed Street Yards connects to the award winning 6th Street Bridge and the Hank Aaron State Trail. The project notably received exemplary performance in Alternative Transportation Public Transportation Access for its proximity within ¼ mile to 7 different bus routes.
Originally constructed in 1904 as a factory/warehouse, the building today houses several multinational corporations and local university operations, which serve as mentors to small, water-related companies, start-ups and entrepreneurs, supporting them to independence.
The Global Water Center is the physical hub of Milwaukee’s global water cluster, acting as a water research, education and business accelerator facility. The project vision was to design a space that will bring university researchers together with industry experts to create synergies and connections, resulting in new businesses and jobs in the water technology sector.
The LEED rating system, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance.