Integral Stormwater Design Part 2: Gwinnett County Environmental and Heritage Center

The 59,000sf Gwinnett County Environmental and Heritage Center designed by Lord, Aeck & Sargent is a LEED Gold Certified building. Its main purpose is to inspire visitors to become better stewards of the environment. As a part of this mission, it has incorporated various stormwater management strategies within the design. The Jaeger Company was the landscape architect. The main focus of the site plan is a large cascading water feature that functions as a heat exchanger for the building. The clean, but non-potable water that supplies it comes from a nearby water treatment facility. The water is then used for irrigation, flushing toilets, and the heating and cooling system. The stormwater management strategy used in the parking lot is similar to the Alpharetta High School parking lot, though the GCEHC's lot is a bit more elaborate particularly because it utilizes pervious pavers within the parking bays and secures the parking edges with flush curbs. One of my favorite details is the design of the rain chains located all around the building. Another important stormwater management feature is the extensive green roof. According to the their website, it is the largest sloping green roof in the United States. The total cost of the project was $16.6 million. You can find more photos of this project on our parent site sitephocus.com.