Rendering of J. Craig Venter Institute’s proposed new research plant.

Sustainable construction projects are flowering in San Diego and slowly reshaping the real estate landscape. Examples include the J. Craig Venter Institute’s proposed plan to develop a sustainable genomic research and administrative plant in La Jolla and the completed Arnold and Mabel Beckman Center for Conservation Research at the Wild Animal Park in Escondido.

Already well versed in green and LEED (Leadership In Energy and Environmental Design) standards is Turner Construction, one of the largest contractors working in the country and a major player in San Diego. Established in 1902, the company has completed more than 250 LEED-certified projects in the United States.

Turner’s San Diego operation is overseen by Jamie Awford, vice president and general manager. The office focuses on high-rise residential, hospitality, health care, education, pharmaceutical, public assembly, commercial office and mixed-use development in San Diego County. Its many green projects include UCSD’s North Campus housing project scheduled to be completed in June with a LEED Silver rating.

Turner performs about $200 million of construction a year in San Diego, helping its clients effectively take advantage of new standards and practices. “We are environmentally responsible and utilize our knowledge and experience to guide owners to sustainable solutions on their projects,” Awford says.

San Diego County has 11 LEED-certified buildings, including Qualcomm Inc.’s Building W (Gold); The San Diego Foundation building (Silver); and the Sun Harbor Marina (Certified).

The only Platinum building in San Diego County is the Ranch House at Del Sur, completed in June 2006. That may soon change.

Last summer, the Venter Institute and UCSD selected Turner to construct the building, which will have 45,000 square feet of laboratories, technical, office and administrative space to hold 125 scientists and other staff on land leased from UCSD at the Scripps upper mesa site. It will be an extension of JCVI’s current home in Rockville, Md.

The institute’s goal is to meet or exceed the Platinum standard in the LEED rating system established by the U.S. Green Building Council, the nonprofit organization founded in 1993 to expand sustainable building practices. The council established four certification levels for new construction — Certified, Silver, Gold and Platinum.

To achieve LEED Platinum status, a project must earn between 52 and 69 points throughout the categories of Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy & Atmosphere, Materials & Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality and Innovation & Design Process.

Aerial view of J. Craig Venter Institute’s proposed new research plant.

“(The point system) is broken down into lots of different areas,” says Bob Riel, vice president of Dynalectric, one of San Diego’s largest electrical subcontractors and the firm selected to work on the Venter project. “In (the category of) Sustainable Sites, there’s a possible 14 points that can come into play. They look for if you built over just dirt, or did you take a place that’s been developed? That’s preferable. (How is the) public transportation? Bike space? Parking? Did you put more green back, more open spaces?”

To help make a project greener, Dynalectric, a subsidiary of EMCOR Inc., another billion-dollar contracing company, likely will work closely with Venter subcontractors on the electrical systems, fire alarms, telephone data, security, lighting control and air conditioning system.

Riel went through special training to become a LEED-certified employee at Dynalectric. A series of seminars followed by three days of studying prepared him for the final test. “It gets to be pretty brutal,” he says.

But hard work can pay off. Because of Riel’s accreditation, Turner Construction scores one LEED point in the category of Innovation & Design Process for including him in the project.

Green Is Here To Stay

The construction of sustainable buildings is growing rapidly. Last month, the California Building Standards Commission adopted the first statewide green building code in the United States in an attempt to reduce the carbon footprint of every new structure by improving energy efficiency and reducing water construction on all new projects. It followed Gov. Schwarzenegger’s Green Building Initiative of 2004, which directs new state construction and major renovation projects to meet LEED Silver status or higher. California has 13 LEED-certified state buildings.

The LEED point system differs between building new construction or maintaining or upgrading existing structures.

Other possible avenues through which Turner Construction can earn LEED points for the Venter Institute project include providing shade, special paving materials or an open grid paving system for 50 percent of the site’s roads, sidewalks or other hard landscapes; developing an irrigation system that depends on only captured rainwater, recycled wastewater, recycled greywater or “water treated and conveyed by a public agency specifically for non-potable uses” and providing at least 35 percent of the structure’s electricity from renewable resources by participating in at least a two-year renewable energy contract.

The J. Craig Venter Institute was formed in October 2006 to become a multidisciplinary genomic-focused research organization. It includes more than 400 scientists and staff and more than 250,000 square feet of laboratory space. J. Craig Venter, the founder, chair and president, is a leading scientist in the the study of genomes.