Toyota gave the design team a unique challenge: meet the corporation's sustainable goal with a budget that would defy conventional wisdom that "green projects cost more then typical projects."

The completion of the largest LEED Gold project in the country on a budget ($90 per ft. for shell and interiors) that would be consider modest for speculative development, let alone a corporate headquarters proves that green can be "mainstream."

The 40-acre project is an important example that sustainable design is not about added cost but added value such as the building being 30-precent more efficient then typical Title 24 buildings, which is the strictest energy code in the nation; the recycling of 95 percent of all construction materials; the most diverse recycle water use in the region for irrigation, plumbing fixtures and HVAC-the project will save about 11 million gallons of water a year; 90-percent of all occupants have views to the outside; and photovoltaic panels generate 20 percent of all power requirements. Coupled with the energy efficiency of the building and systems, the project uses 50-percent less of the electric grid than a standard building in the state.

The 626,000-sq.-ft. project is the largest LEED Gold project in the country.

The Development Team

Owner: Toyota Motor Sales USA
Architect: LPA
General contractor: Turner Construction Co.
Engineers:
Culp & Tanner (lead)
Gluman International (mechanical)
Konsortum 1 Staff (electrical)
CTG Energetics (LEED consultant)
Key subcontractors:
Guy Yocom Construction Inc. (tilt-up & building concrete)
Orange County Erectors (structural steel)
Heinman Contract Glazing
Martin Bros. (studs, drywall, lath and plaster)
Key Air Conditioning Inc. (HVAC)
Sasco Electric
Parkwest Landscaping

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