RAFI-USA Office Building/
Dan Pollitt Conference Center
Rural Advancement Foundation International
Location: Pittsboro, NC
Size: heated 5,100 SF; 280 SF screen porch; 480 SF covered porches; 245 SF deck
Orientation: true South
Features: R-19 walls; R-30 cathedral roofs; clear insulated South glazing; low-e glazing on North, West and East; clear insulated glazing on clerestories; 18-inch overhangs; 933 cu.ft. colored concrete slab for thermal mass; natural cross ventilation; HardiePlank siding; colored metal roof with radiant barrier; 100% recycled heartpine flooring, trim, and shelving; shaded parking, gravel driveway to avoid runoff; minimum impact on site.
Heating & Cooling: heat pump and zero clearance high efficiency fireplace (Opel 2000)
Energy use: $1.00/SF-yr or 32Kbtu/SF-yr
Site energy and CO2107 (1000 lbs/yr) – 2005 figures
Construction cost: approximately $750,000 (2000-2001) including site work.
The RAFI-USA building received the 2002 EPA-Energy Star Label, the first office building in NC. View the EPA case study (PDF, 1M).
Alicia Ravetto received the 2002 Best Practices in Sustainability Award from SBIC (Sustainable Buildings Industry Council ) for small commercial building for the design of RAFI-USA's "green" headquarters. The award was received at the International Green Building Conference held in Austin, TX in November 2002.
Read more about the design/building process of this building at RAFI-USA's website.