Photo credit: Tom Kessler, Kessler Photography

Overview

• Location: Omaha, NE
• Building type(s): Commercial office, Interpretive Center
• New construction
• 68,000 ft2 (6,320 m2)
• Project scope: 3-story building
• Urban setting
• Completed July 2004
• Rating: U.S. Green Building Council LEED-NC, v.2/v.2.1--Level: Gold (40 points)

The Carl T. Curtis Midwest Regional Headquarters houses the offices from which the National Park Service oversees a 13-state region. The building also serves as headquarters for oversight of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail and as a year-round visitor center, with park rangers leading discussion groups.

Part of the City of Omaha's downtown riverfront redevelopment master plan, the project links the surrounding riverfront projects as a "crossroads" on the existing trail system and the landing point of a future pedestrian bridge.

Environmental Aspects

The National Park Service was dedicated to designing a building that exhibited its philosophies about the environment. The Service began with the site, a perceived brownfield in an area of the city under major redevelopment.

The project promotes the use of alternative transportation with outlets for electric vehicles, designated parking spaces for carpools, and bike racks and showers. A city bus stop is planned adjacent to the site.

Native, drought-tolerant plants that will not require permanent irrigation surround the building. A retention and a detention pond naturally filter rainwater into the site. Restroom facilities use water-conserving systems.

The building's east-west axis allows simpler mechanical controls, increases daylighting, reduces solar heat gain from the west, and gives 90% of the occupants views of the river or surrounding area.

Materials selected for the project include insulated precast concrete, aluminum, FSC-certified wood, low-emissivity insulated tinted glass, and limestone. Local materials were emphasized both to reflect the Midwest region and to satisfy LEED(r) requirements. Minimal finishes were used in the building.

The collaboration of the developer, the City of Omaha, and the design team earned the project a LEED Gold rating, surpassing the Park Service's goal of Silver and garnering Nebraska its first LEED certified building.

Owner & Occupancy

• Owned by Park Service Developers / Noddle Companies
• Occupants: Federal government
• Typically occupied by 220 people, 40 hours per person per week; and 31 visitor per week, 1 hour per visitor per week

Building Programs

Indoor Spaces:	Office, Lobby/reception, Retail general, Conference
Outdoor Spaces:	Interpretive landscape, Pedestrian/non-motorized vehicle path, Parking

Keywords

Transportation benefits, Brownfield redevelopment, Indigenous vegetation, Efficient fixtures and appliances, Drought-tolerant landscaping, Massing and orientation, Local materials, Certified wood, C&D waste management, Connection to outdoors, Daylighting