We are pleased to announce the Frank and Maureen Wilkens Science and Engineering Center at Cape Cod Community College has earned LEED Gold Certification! The 39,000 square foot building was envisioned as a regional STEM hub that transforms the center of the campus. Partially funded by the Commonwealth’s Department of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM), the project was required by executive order to be a minimum of LEED Silver. However, the project exceeded its own goals and was awarded LEED Gold. Here are some highlights of how the project achieved Gold!
Sustainable Sites: Open Space
Several outdoor gathering spaces of varying sizes and programs were designed to seamlessly integrate the new building into the existing campus. The building humbly occupies the center of the campus by nestling into the hill and the existing oak grove. Its racetrack corridor is designed to coincide with campus circulation paths encouraging foot traffic both in and around the building.
Water Efficiancy: Outdoor Water Use Reduction
The site sensitive landscaping and extensive meadow grasses do not require any irrigation. The meadow grasses also serve to create habitat for local species and is maintenance free.
Energy and Atmosphere: Optimize Energy Performance
The advanced mechanical systems separate fresh air supply from space heating and cooling to reduce energy consumption and improve indoor air quality. The 100% dedicated outdoor air supply provides the neutral temperature fresh air to spaces and local fan coil units provide the heating and cooling. Decoupling the supply from the conditioned air is a big energy saver in labs where high air changes per hour are required due to the use of chemicals.
Materials and Resources: Building Life-Cycle Impact Reduction
From the earliest project phases the design and material selections were guided by life cycle assessments performed in Tally. For example, a shoebox analysis of exterior wall types guided the project towards thermally modified wood instead of fiber cement panels. The project reduced its embodied carbon by 19%.
Indoor Environmental Quality: Low-Emitting Materials
PAYETTE’s Material Policy guided the specifications and submittal review process, eliminating red list materials to ensure not only a healthy environment for building occupants, but also for the people who are involved with the manufacturing process.
Innovation: The Toilet of the Future
A unique innovation credit was awarded for integrating a demonstration closed-loop toilet into the design. The toilet design was the winner of the 2012 Reinvent the Toilet Challenge set by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation. This is the first installation in the US.
Photo by Robert Benson Photography © (Images 1-8); Photo by Damianos Photography © (Final Image)
The 2025 OpenLAB Boston studio work will be exhibited at Virginia Tech Monday, March 2nd through Wednesday, March 4th.
Please join us for the following events on Monday, March 2nd:
11:00am - Lecture with Parke MacDowell
1:00pm Lobby talk with Kevin Sullivan
This year’s studio identifies seven sites along the frayed edges of Boston’s Greenway. The Greenway is a one-mile-long linear park running through the heart of the city, reconnecting downtown Boston with its waterfront. Many of the parcels along its edges remain undeveloped and present mute, blank facades to the public realm. Addressing and repairing these edges through acts of infilling, layering, grafting, framing, and placemaking is the core focus of the studio—SUTURE.