Sustainable Buildings Policy
The Sustainable Buildings Policy (PDF; established by Resolution 31326) ensures City-owned buildings efficiently use energy, water, and material resources. Since enacting the policy in 2000, the City has completed more than 50 LEED projects, including 4 LEED Platinum and 34 LEED Gold. The City updated the Sustainable Buildings Policy in 2011 to pursue stronger goals in the face of a worsening climate crisis.
The Sustainable Buildings Policy applies only to City-owned facilities. Other buildings in Seattle are covered by the Seattle Energy Code and, if they are larger than 20,000 square feet, Energy Benchmarking and the Building Emissions Performance Standard. If 50,000 square feet or larger, buildings are also covered by Building Tune-Ups.
Learn more about the requirements for buildings of different sizes below.
Projects Larger than 5,000 Square Feet
Buildings larger than 5,000 square feet must meet the following requirements:
- New construction and major renovations 5,000 square feet or greater must meet LEED Gold, as well as key performance requirements for energy and water efficiency, waste diversion, and bicycle facilities.
- Tenant Improvements 5,000 square feet or greater, with a scope of work that includes mechanical, electrical, and plumbing, must meet LEED Gold, as well as water efficiency and waste diversion requirements.
Projects Smaller than 5,000 Square Feet
Projects smaller than 5,000 square feet and projects not eligible for a LEED rating should utilize Capital Green. Capital Green is a green design and construction evaluation tool for small new construction and remodeling projects, such as expansion and renovation projects, as well as tenant improvement projects. Projects shall include the completion of a Capital Green checklist to assess opportunities for including sustainable building features.
The Capital Green Toolkit is two linked Excel files: "capital green form.xlsm" and "toolkit.xlsx". Both files must be downloaded and co-located. Download both files into their own project-specific folder. Both files must be open to enable Toolkit macros.