Many people post- COVID have realized the importance of health and wellness not only being able to working out, eating healthier but also the quality of buildings that they are occupying. Long Bridge Aquatics and Recreation Center in Arlington, VA is a facility that has been certified as LEED Silver providing the community with a high quality athletics facility promoting health and fitness. Long Bridge Aquatics and Fitness center is a 92,500 square foot facility close to Ronald Regan airport and has a 50m competition pool, a 4,000 square foot leisure pool, 3 lane running track and a fitness center. The facility is built on a 10.5 acre site and has 5 stormwater management ponds that helped the facility to achieve the LEED Silver certification.
Within the LEED Silver certification the facility excelled in the Indoor Environmental Quality category achieving 11 out of a possible 15 points. In particular the facility achieved all points for Low Emitting Materials: Adhesives and Sealants, Paints and Coatings, Flooring Systems, Composite Wood and Agrifiber Products. The facility only missed four points in: Increased Ventilation, Controllability of Systems-Thermal Comfort, Daylight and Views-Daylight and Daylight and Views- Views. Another category that Long Bridge excelled in was the innovation Category achieving an extra 5 points for innovation in design and one extra for LEED Accredited Professional with a bonus point in the Regional Priority Credits for Stormwater Design- Quantity Control.
One category that Long Bridge greatly struggled in is the Energy & Atmosphere category achieving only 12 out of a possible 53 points. The 12 points where achieved from 7 out of a possible 19 from Optimize Energy Performance, 2 out of 2 for Enhanced Commissioning and Enhanced Refrigerant Management and one more from measurement and verification. Some of the large categories that the facility missed points in where: On-site renewable energy, Green Power and Energy Performance Metering Path. Improving upon these three categories can help to boost the LEED certification and improve upon the points that the facility can achieve.
This facility has also won numerous awards since its completion including: 2021 Best New Facility, Virginia Recreation and Park Society, 2021 WBC Craftsmanship Awards- Metals Category, 2022 Award in Architecture, American Institute of Architects Washington DC Chapter and 2024 Award of Excellence - Buildings/ Facilities, DBIA Mid- Atlantic region just to name a few.
Interested in Learning More?
Coakley Williams Profile: https://coakleywilliams.com/projects/long-bridge-park-arlington-county
USGBC Profile: https://www.usgbc.org/projects/long-bridge-aquatic-center?view=scorecard