Steele & Freeman, Inc., completes construction on Tarrant Regional Water District Administration Annex Building, Registered for anticipated LEED® Gold Certification, featuring the largest photovoltaic solar array in the State of Texas.

Steele & Freeman, Inc., a Fort-Worth-based Construction Manager/General Contractor, has completed the Tarrant Regional Water District Administration Annex building for the Tarrant Regional Water District.  A lively modern looking building situated near the Trinity River, it has been designed and built to be the new command center for the Tarrant Regional Water District and a comfortable workspace for 50 employees.  The roof of the building is covered in solar panels, which generate an average of 800 kwh of electricity per day (a typical home uses 50 kwh per day).  The building has been registered with the U.S. Green Building Council and is currently under review for an anticipated LEED®  Gold Certification.   The Administration Annex is located at 808 East Northside Drive in Fort Worth, Texas.

Steele & Freeman, Inc. was hired by Tarrant Regional Water District to act as Construction Manager and General Contractor for the project, an arrangement also known as Construction Manager at Risk.  This arrangement allowed Steele & Freeman to provide expertise by being involved in constructability reviews, estimating, and scheduling during the design phase of the project.  The architecture firm of Gideon Toal was the architect for this successful project.

“Our client wanted an extremely energy-efficient building, along with the other high-performance features typically only found in a LEED building.   We explored many different options during preconstruction, with the outcome being a comfortable and cost-effective building that works very well for their needs”, said Jared Jones, Steele & Freeman’s Project Manager and a LEED® Accredited Professional.
During construction, a television documentary crew interviewed Mr. Jones for a film on the emerging green building industry.

The building features the largest array of photovoltaic (electricity-generating) panels in the State of Texas, which cover the entire roof.  Other green (sustainable) building features are the extremely energy efficient heating/cooling system that continually cycles fresh air into the building, the use of locally produced materials such as Austin limestone on the building exterior, energy efficient curtain wall glass, a view of the outside for every employee, sealed concrete flooring, cork flooring, low volatile organic compound (VOC) recycled material, carpet tiles, and low VOC finishes.  The structure of the building features fly ash concrete, tilt wall panels, structural steel and metal studs.  The lighting in the building operates with occupancy sensors.  The exterior of the building features a cistern system that gathers and reuses rainwater from the roof, xeriscaping/native plants, and a KISSS (low water usage) system that, once the plants are established, will be the only irrigation for the grounds.  The building is close to the Trinity Trail system and employees will be able to maintain health by not only utilizing the trails for transportation to/from work, but they will also be able to work out in the exercise room.  The icing on the cake is the LEED® interpretive signage in the building.

This project is the fourth LEED project completed or underway for Steele & Freeman.  Other LEED projects are the Tarrant County Southeast Sub courthouse in Arlington, which has been registered with the US Green Building Council for an anticipated LEED® Silver Certification.  The Tarrant County Northwest Sub courthouse in Fort Worth, scheduled to begin construction in September 2009, is being designed for a proposed LEED® Silver Certification with the US Green Building Council.   Keller ISD hybrid Intermediate/Middle School is in the preconstruction phase with a proposed LEED design.  Steele & Freeman, Inc. is recognized as the go-to green builder for Tarrant County, with four LEED® Accredited Professionals on staff who speak on sustainability and green building issues.

Gideon Toal is an award-winning Fort Worth architecture firm.   The project design team was J. Bruce Benner, Principal; Ronnie Clements, Project Manager; Terry Garrett, Project Architect; Greg Ibanez, Designer; Karen Redrow, Interior Design; and Jenna Wann, Interior Design.