Living Building Challenge Building Tours

By Allison Maynard, Communications Associate

On December 11th Jonathan Wright of The Wright Builders and his project team leaders will lead professional tours of two buildings designed to meet the rigorous standards of the Living Building Challenge (LBC) – of which there are only eight certified projects in the world. Currently under construction, both The R.W. Kern Center (80% complete) and The Hitchcock Center for the Environment (framing is in place) are on Hampshire College's Campus in Amherst, MA.

Light refreshments will be provided by The Wright Builders and the conversation with continue after dark at the Kern Center with the Facility Owners participating in a Question and Answer session, led by the Boston LBC Collaborative.

Please register here to attend!

Project Details:
The first building is the 17,000 square-foot R.W. Kern Center. Upon its completion, the Kern Center will be a multifunctional learning, teaching, and exhibition space; the point of entry for prospective students and their families into the Hampshire community; and the location of the admissions financial aid and new student programs offices. Project completion is scheduled for the winter of 2016.

The second building is the new 9,000 square-foot Hitchcock Center.  The building will be New England's first public environmental education center to meet the LBC (version 2.1), more than doubling the Center’s capacity to host programs for all ages, while also being a one-of-a-kind teaching tool. The new “living” Hitchcock Center is designed to model and mimic natural systems with interpretive and interactive exhibits, and will be an extension of Hitchcock’s mission to create a healthier more sustainable future. The building will be completed in the summer of 2016.