New Neighbor. University of California will share San Joaquin Valley agricultural acres.

The new location will be the UC system's tenth campus, but the first in
the Central Valley, where college attendance has trailed the rest of
the state. "When [officials] began exploring the idea of a new campus in the late 1980s, the Central Valley was tops in projected growth in college-age students, and was the most underserved," says Lindsay Desrochers, UC-Merced vice chancellor for administration.

It Makes a Village. The Merced campus will house 600 students in a cluster of nine residential buildings.

About $350 million worth of construction on 102 acres is under way, including a "village" of nine residential buildings for 600 students and a central plant. The academic buildings–a library, classroom and office building and a science and engineering facility–outline what will eventually become the school’s main quad. Later this summer or in early fall, administrators expect to break ground for a recreation center and a facilities maintenance building. By 2030, the campus will expand to 25,000 students and will occupy 910 acres, planners say. Click here to view images

Owner Inspection. Environmental Steward Hughes-Doyle (left), and Campus Architect Smith examine a high-performance curtain wall section.

Merced’s campus will be the first in the state system, and likely the only college campus in the country, with all buildings achieving a silver rating under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design system (LEED). The point-based system was devised by the U.S. Green Building Council to measure construction’s impact on the environment. The system factors in such items as energy and water use, indoor air quality and site development. Buildings can earn a minimum "certified" rating, or a rating as high as "platinum."

Commitment to these environmental goals is written into the campus’ long-range development plan, adopted in January 2002. In addition to physical planning and construction, the policy encompasses operational programs such as transportation, maintenance and purchasing. At Merced, "sustainability is a guiding principle, rather than layered on," says Cynthia Hughes-Doyle, who was UC-Merced’s director of environmental stewardship until her recent relocation to Los Angeles.

The Merced campus’ commitment to green building and energy standards predates the UC system’s adoption of such policies in July 2004. "Merced started planning with a commitment to [sustainability] several years before the system-wide policy was even a glimmer," says Michael Bade, director of capital programs for UC-San Francisco. In a previous role, Bade led development of the university system-wide standards.

In some ways, Merced’s policies are more ambitious than the UC system-wide standards. These mandate new buildings achieve "equivalence" to LEED certification but do not require the U.S. Green Building Council’s third-party approval process. In addition, the UC standards require that new buildings outperform the state energy code, Title 24, by at least 20%. Most of Merced’s buildings are expected to perform 30% better than Title 24.

To develop energy-use targets for Merced, the California Institute of Energy and Environment (CIEE), a UC branch, collected operational data from other campuses and adjusted it for building type and the Central Valley climate, where summer temperatures above 100ºF are common. "We developed an aggressive set of energy standards for the buildings and then sized the central plant based on those assumptions," says San Francisco-based Alisdair McGregor, a principal of Arup. The firm is designer of the central plant and site infrastructure, and serves as mechanical, electrical and plumbing consultant for the library and science and engineering building.

Shading Device. Covered walkways shield buildings and students from Central Valley sun.

One key central plant efficiency feature is a chilled water thermal energy storage system that is charged at night when electricity rates are low. The installed equipment is sized for projected campus loads through 2008. However, space has been left for future equipment additions, with an eye toward generating electricity on site. "The feeling is that in 10 years, fuel cells will be commercially viable," says McGregor. The 25-year, full campus build out will require a second or third plant, he says.

Spectrally selective glazing and highly efficient mechanical systems and lighting help keep buildings’ energy consumption low. Many spaces will have operable windows, which will automatically shut off air conditioning when they are opened. "We are trying to give as much control to occupants as we can," says Karl Brown, CIEE deputy director.

While individual buildings were designed by different architects, the three and four-story reinforced concrete structures share other common elements. Buildings’ exterior palates and roofs will be similarly light-colored to minimize heat gain. Sunscreens and covered arcades will provide shade but...