Overland Park is one step closer to adopting a new code that aims to increase the sustainability of new and updated city facilities.
Last month, the Overland Park City Council Finance, Administration and Economic Development Committee voted 5-1 to recommend adopting green building objectives for city facilities.
For the most part, the members of the committee were supportive of adopting a sustainability code for city construction projects, though there was some disagreement about how strict the new building objectives should be.
Councilmember Jeff Cox cast the lone dissenting vote. He said that he sees it as adding a potential “avalanche of bureaucratic nonsense” to city projects without offering much environmental benefit in the grand scheme of things.
If ultimately adopted by the full Overland Park City Council, these new standards would only apply to the construction of new city facilities or major renovations at existing city-owned facilities. They would have no bearing on privately owned buildings or existing city facilities that aren’t being renovated.
What is OP’s proposed green building code?
The minimum requirements include:
- Electricity-only for primary energy sources in appropriate buildings with an emphasis on on-site energy generation through rooftop solar panels or other means
- Energy efficiency, as measured by an ENERGY STAR score of 80 or higher
- Building materials that have less embodied carbon, such as reused materials
- Green stormwater management and waste management plans
- Internal water conservation elements, like low-flow toilets and sensored sinks
- Infrastructure for electric and hybrid vehicle charging
- Landscaping that requires less water, reduces erosion, prioritizes pollinators and has appropriate shrub and tree plantings
- Alternative transportation infrastructure, such as bike racks
Individual city projects could exceed these requirements in favor of more sustainability or green design.
Read the full resolution as drafted and the proposed checklist for city projects here.
Environmental committee recommended more specific rules
The sustainability building code proposal follows the city’s previous endorsement of the KC Regional Climate Action Plan, which strives to bring new local government buildings to net zero by 2030 among other goals tied to an effort to bring the region to net zero by 2050.
As such, city staff drafted the green building objectives with input from various departments. Subsequently, Overland Park’s Environmental Advisory Council endorsed them, but recommended a few extra bullet points, including:
- Achieving LEED Silver certifications from the U.S. Green Building Council on new and renovated city buildings or obtaining an equal certification
- Or meeting a handful of other requirements related to tree planting, low-carbon energy sources and air quality
- Revisiting the green building objectives in a year
Councilmember Melissa Cheatham tried twice unsuccessfully to amend the motion to have the green building objectives adhere more closely to the recommendations from the EAC.
First, Cheatham proposed requiring new and renovated city buildings to achieve LEED Silver certification or an equivalent certification. After that failed, she proposed following the alternative requirements suggested by the EAC, which also failed.
Next steps:
- The green building objectives resolution is headed to the Overland Park City Council Community Development Committee. It is on the agenda for the committee’s meeting on Monday at 6 p.m.
- Then, it will go to the full city council for consideration at a later date.
- If adopted, the codes would apply to new building construction or major renovations at city facilities like parks, department buildings and the like.
More on Overland Park’s sustainability efforts: Overland Park plans to make all of its operations sustainable — but how?
