New medical building features the latest in renewable energy systems and designed to be LEED Certified

Tuesday, Oct 31 2006, 12:00

City Core Developments Inc. has chosen Selectpower Inc. to provide state-of-the-art heating, cooling and solar power systems for its futuristic new Springdale Professional Building project in Brampton.

The Springdale project, located next to Brampton's new William Osler Hospital, is under construction through 2006 and opening in 2007. The 120,000-square-foot condominium professional-medical building is described by builder City Core Developments as one of the most-advanced commercial projects ever developed in Canada.

"We are quite proud of this project and we believe that it will be the first LEED Certified green building in the Brampton area," said developer Jack Pong of City Core Developments of Toronto. "Our philosophy is that if you can build a sustainable green building that's economically viable, then you should be doing so today."

The project is designed to meet the Canada Green Building Council's standards for a silver LEED Certified rating (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), which recognizes leading-edge buildings incorporating design, construction and operational practices that combine healthy, high-quality and high-performance advantages with low environmental impact.

The building's environmental impact and performance will be exceptional thanks to a design that incorporates advanced geothermal heating and cooling systems, plus solar power, from Selectpower Inc. The 11-kilowatt solar system will use nine solar panels about 12 by 20 feet each and will combine photovoltaic power with batteries to provide emergency back-up in the case of power outages.

"The reduction of greenhouse gases and the energy savings will be very substantial for a building of this size.” Pong said. “What we are achieving is equivalent to taking 99 cars off the road each year, as the building eliminates via geothermal and solar systems about 459 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions annually, which is absolutely incredible."

On the cost-savings side, City Core's use of geothermal and solar solutions is estimated to deliver cumulative energy savings of approximately $25 million over a 30-year contract. The building does not require the use of gas or oil at all, in addition to dramatically reducing electricity consumption that would be typical for a building its size. Not only will Springdale save money now, it will be well protected from rising energy costs for the life of the building.

"The word is spreading rapidly as more businesses and homeowners discover geothermal technology as a truly sustainable and affordable solution that literally pays for itself," said Suzanne Wiltshire, president of Selectpower.

"Geothermal technology," Pong added, "is taking off as an alternative energy resource as developers continue to discover its compelling advantages."

"The Springdale project also has nine solar panels about 12 by 20 feet each," said Pong, "and will combine photovoltaic power with batteries to provide emergency back-up in the case of power outages."

“Once developers and buyers understand what geothermal energy is there is no question that more projects will take advantage of the real benefits available in using geothermal systems," Pong said. “Geothermal is considered a new technology because it is not widely used or understood. It is a technology that has been around for many years but is only now gaining new public awareness due to high energy costs."