“We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us.” So spoke the British statesman Winston Churchill to the House of Commons in 1943, in hopes of convincing that body to rebuild the bomb-damaged House to its original form. While California has never been the victim of air raids on our built environment, our current forms of development are creating ecological time bombs that force us to question the values behind our growth. What kind of future are we creating when we build inefficient, unhealthy buildings with no acknowledgement of context or connection to their surroundings? Is our society so fickle that we need energy crises, regulations, and gridlock before we consider the effect of our tree on the forest? Is the poor design that we are constantly exposed to a measure of our society’s foresight or are designers continually lowering the bar?
The state is facing a number of serious issues that need to be addressed by changes in the way that we design and build our facilities. Currently, buildings consume 30% of our energy, produce 25% of our greenhouse gases, account for 30% of our waste stream, and affect the health, comfort, and productivity of building occupants, particularly when contaminants compromise indoor environmental quality. In an era of high energy prices, inevitable climate change, overused landfills, water shortages and constant headlines about “toxic mold,” it seems obvious that, if we want to leave our children a better world, we must change our development practices. What is the role of the architect in bringing about this change? When will we be able to look to designers not just for plans, but as educators, leaders, and partners in designing a future that ensures prosperity for all?
Under the current administration, the state has begun to address development issues and has emerged as a leader in the sustainable development field. Starting with the Capitol Area East End Complex project, the state has made a conscious decision that it will not wait for industry to change; the state itself will be a change agent.
California is the fifth-largest economy in the world, the second largest building owner in the country, and spends over $3.2 billion annually on construction projects. Through the efforts of the multi-agency Governor’s Sustainable Building Taskforce, the state is using its massive buying power to push the market in a direction that will improve building delivery, performance, and operations for all sectors of design and construction. The East End Complex is the largest construction project that the state has ever undertaken, and through the involvement of the Taskforce it will be a showcase of sustainable building design.
As a result of the success with the East End, the governor issued an executive order on August 2, 2000, that called on the state to build all future buildings using practices and technology that ensure they are models of sustainable building design and construction. The Taskforce developed a plan, Building Better Buildings: A Blueprint for Sustainable State Facilities, that makes ten recommendations to the administration that would ensure that the state’s construction program produces the “models” called for in the executive order. These recommendations cover everything from program planning to financing to training and are already being implemented into projects and process. Soon after the release of the Blueprint, the Governor issued another executive order relating to best practices in planning and community design. EO D-46-01 requires the state to site and construct buildings in ways that provide the greatest achievable benefit to the local communities that the buildings will be in. It includes planning that will take into account mass transit, historical preservation, joint-use, community input, economic revitalization, and more. It is leadership like this that will begin to turn the tide on some of the gravely serious issues that face the state. It is leadership like this that we need to see from the design community.
My office acts as the design reviewer for all of California’s public schools and the policy leader for the state’s real estate department. This position allows us to pursue policies and procedures for the state that are at the forefront of planning and design practices. My staff and I have been working internally and externally on a number of programs that we feel are shaping a built environment for the state that will enhance the state’s already strong architectural and cultural legacy. We have developed a vision for the future of California, a vision that provides a balance of ecology, equity, and economy for all of our citizens. I see state buildings and schools lit by daylight, creating their own energy, treating their own wastewater so that it is cleaner leaving than entering, sending little to no waste to the landfill from construction through operations, sited close to affordable mixed-use housing, accessible from mass-transit, functioning as community centers that are shared with local governments, and providing an indoor environment that allows our workers and students to learn and work at the highest level possible. I believe that this vision is attainable. Designers must be an integral part of this future. It is only through our involvement in this process, our continual education of others and ourselves that we can achieve a truly sustainable society.
One of the exciting programs that we have been working on is the Excellence in Public Building Initiative. This is a comprehensive shift in the way the state plans, designs, builds and operates buildings. The goals of the Initiative are many and diverse:
1. Demonstrate Architectural Excellence
State buildings will represent the best of design and shall be safe, healthy, and supportive environments. They will symbolize California’s commitment to good government and quality education.
2. Integrate Art into Public Buildings and Public Spaces
Art will be fully integrated from the beginning of each project, with at least one percent (1%) of the project’s construction budget devoted to this purpose. The Department of General Services will coordinate with the California Arts Council to implement the Art in Public Buildings Program.
3. Build Sustainable, Energy Efficient Buildings
Performance outcomes for sustainability and energy efficiency will save taxpayers money consistently in future years.
4. Ensure That Buildings Are Cost-Effective
Public buildings will be cost-effective to build and operate, recognizing that operating costs over a building’s lifetime far exceed the cost of initial design and construction. Using results-focused performance standards, life cycle costing, and an integrated design approach, new buildings will deliver value exceeding their initial costs.
5. Evaluate Buildings for Design and Performance
Building design and performance include structural, aesthetic, functional, and human elements. The structural elements are addressed through codes and standards. Aesthetic matters will be evaluated in public comment and professional peer review. “Human” concerns are addressed through the systematic use of post-occupancy evaluation, which assesses the firsthand experiences of the building’s occupants and operators as they work in the facility and applies lessons learned to make improvements to that building and to future building designs.
6. Ensure The Safety and Security of Occupants and the Public
California citizens, public employees, and students shall be served by buildings that are safe and secure from natural and man-made disasters, while respecting democratic principles in a free and open society. Building designs shall allow for control of access for security purposes, the protection of key infrastructure and systems essential for the protection of our state, and other measures to ensure public safety.
7. Ensure Accessibility for All Through “Universal Design”
Public buildings will be designed for ease of access, regardless of the age or physical abilities of people using them. By applying “Universal Design,” an approach that incorporates usability and ease of navigation into the building’s inherent design, the state will eliminate the need for costly add-ons and special accommodations to make buildings fully accessible.
8. Make A Positive Contribution to the Local Community
Public buildings will be designed to enhance the local built environment, consistent with Governor Davis’s Executive Order D-46-01. The state will site public buildings to strengthen and revitalize California’s cities and towns, taking into account local priorities such as the need for neighborhood revitalization.
9. Collaborate to Achieve Extraordinary Results
Excellence in public buildings requires the expertise of state employees from many disciplines and state agencies. The Departments of General Services, Finance, Education, Toxic Substances, and many others will collaborate in the design and construction of public buildings, starting from the initial stages of project definition and continuing throughout the process, including post-occupancy evaluation.
10. Utilize Best Practices from the Public and Private Sectors
The state will assure excellence through the use of best practices, whether developed in the public or private sector. For example, our process will include Total Building Commissioning and Partnering, i.e., establishing sound project goals early and monitoring adherence to those goals throughout the process in a team-based approach.
11. Focus on Customer Needs
Public buildings must support and enhance the productivity and effectiveness of state employees and provide an efficient, comfortable atmosphere for citizens using public services. These objectives will be accomplished through participation of customers—the people who will occupy and use the building being built or remodeled—in the design and art selection process. Furthermore, post-occupancy evaluation will ensure that the building meets their needs.
12. Emphasize Creativity and Innovation in the Selection Process
The state’s selection process will match the right architect with the right project and encourage innovation; its selection criteria will assure that the state hires talent and creativity as well as experience. Peer review will bring both public and private sector architects and construction professionals into the state’s selection process. This demonstrated commitment to excellence will help make the state the patron of choice for design professionals.
The Excellence goals will apply to all state building and remodeling projects, whether large or small. Because of the scale and visibility of the state’s building program, the Excellence principles and processes will elevate standards throughout the design and construction industries.
One of our other promising programs is our work to improve the delivery and performance of public schools in the State with the Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS). CHPS began in November 1999, when the Energy Commission called together Pacific Gas and Electric Company, San Diego Gas and Electric, and Southern California Edison to discuss the best ways to improve the performance of California’s schools. Out of this partnership, CHPS grew to include a diverse range of government, utility, and non-profit organizations with a unifying goal to improve the quality of education for California’s children. With the successful launch of the Best Practices Manual in 2001, interest in high performance design grew, and CHPS expanded its focus beyond California, developing a national version of the manuals as well as other state-specific versions. In early 2002, CHPS incorporated as a non-profit organization, further solidifying its commitment to environmentally sound design that enhances the educational environment for all schoolchildren.
The goal of the CHPS is to create a new generation of high performance school facilities in California. The focus is on public schools and levels K-12, although many of the design principles apply to private schools and higher education facilities as well. High performance schools are healthy, comfortable, resource efficient, safe, secure, adaptable, and easy to operate and maintain. They help school districts achieve higher test scores, retain quality teachers and staff, reduce operating cost, increase average daily attendance (ADA), and reduce liability, while at the same time being friendly to the environment and serving as community centers. CHPS offers a broad range of services including our Best Practices Manual, technical support, design expertise, and our CHPS website (www.chps.net), which contains research papers, support documents, databases, and other information that support the Best Practices Manual.
Through leadership programs like CHPS and the Excellence Initiative, we are using the State’s massive buying power and information resources to effect change in our society. It is inherent, I believe, in the social compact between government and the public for government to look after the health, safety, and welfare of society, and all actions should be derived from these core guiding values. It is this belief that shapes my office’s actions; we feel that it is our duty to be leaders, to help to shape and drive the progressive agenda that will begin to turn the tide in our struggle for sustainability. I would like to count you, the designers of California, as my partners in this. In light of the problems that our state and world face, I think it is our only hope.
Author Stephan Castellanos, FAIA, was appointed as State Architect by Governor Gray Davis in February 2000. The State Architect acts as California’s policy leader for building design and construction. The Division of the State Architect also provides design and construction oversight for K-12 schools and community colleges. Mr. Castellanos was a partner and architect at Derivi Castellanos Architects for 20 years. He has been an active member of the American Institute of Architects and has led the Institute in improving governmental relations, heightening public awareness of architectural excellence, and advocating for diversity within the profession. Mr. Castellanos serves as National Secretary on the AIA Board of Directors, and has served as the California Regional AIA Director. He has earned numerous awards of achievement including the Presidential Citation from the American Institute of Architects California Council in both 1993 and 1998.
Originally published 3rd quarter 2002, in arcCA 02.3, “Building Value.”
