Bastyr Student Village wins Green Globe Award; university showcases buildings on Northwest EcoBuilding Guild Green Home Tour

Bastyr University's Student Village housing complex will be honored with King County's Green Globe Award as a "Leader in Sustainable Building Program" at the King County Earth Day Expo April 22. The award, presented by the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, is the most prestigious environmental honor given by the county every two years and recognizes projects that excel in leadership and activities that foster stewardship by protecting the environment, managing natural resources and benefiting the community.

Bastyr University’s Student Village housing complex will be honored with King County’s Green Globe Award as a “Leader in Sustainable Building Program” at the King County Earth Day Expo April 22.

The award, presented by the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, is the most prestigious environmental honor given by the county every two years and recognizes projects that excel in leadership and activities that foster stewardship by protecting the environment, managing natural resources and benefiting the community.

“It is a tremendous honor for our Student Village to be recognized with this award,” said Bastyr University President Daniel Church. “To have our peers at King County notice and appreciate the long-term commitment to environmental stewardship we strived for with this and other university projects is deeply satisfying.”

Nationally recognized as a model to which other student housing projects should aspire, Bastyr University’s Student Village exhibits many “green” qualities such as high-efficiency water heaters and gas boilers, energy-efficient appliances and light fixtures, low-flow plumbing, natural ventilation, radiant-heat flooring made of finished concrete, sustainable landscaping and “butterfly” roofs to capture rainwater.

The Green Globe ceremony begins at 11 a.m. as part of the King County Earth Day Expo at Westlake Park April 22, and will be attended by King County Executive Dow Constantine and emceed by former KIRO-TV anchor Penny LeGate.

The Student Village has received numerous awards and certifications since opening in 2010. Last September, it earned Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) platinum certification, becoming the first student housing project on the west coast to receive the highest green building classification. In November, the Student Village won the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Outstanding Multifamily Project in the 2010 LEED for Homes Awards, announced at the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo in Chicago, Ill.

• Bastyr University’s Student Village will host a stop on the upcoming Northwest EcoBuilding Guild Green Home Tour this Saturday and Sunday. More than two dozen new and remodeled buildings in the greater Seattle area will showcase examples of successful green building strategies that improve energy-efficiency and indoor air quality.

The tour will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days, with Bastyr University offering self-guided tours for guests, as well as three guided tours daily at 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.