On Thursday, October 20, 2011, Winnipeg’s Linden Woods Community Centre celebrated the grand opening of its new addition. It is the first project to complete the formal certification process required under the Province of Manitoba’s Green Building Policy, receiving Three Globes – the equivalent of LEED Silver Certification.
The Linden Woods Community Centre demonstrates how Green Globes certification is a viable option to LEED. However, the most important factor of the Green Globes Certification process was its impact on the building’s energy performance. Initially, the project manager had budgeted nearly $100,000 for the fees associated with LEED certification. When the community centre decided to pursue Green Globes instead, the project was certified for less than $40,000. This allowed the design team to divert much-needed funds to upgrade mechanical systems and nearly triple the project’s energy performance. The change added nearly $8,000 in annual energy savings for the centre’s operating costs.