Built in 2010, Via’s facility at 2855 N. 63rd Street, on the eastern boundary of the city of Boulder, was designed and built to maximize the use of the most recent green building technology available and to minimize operating costs.
In June 2013, as part of the Boulder Earth Conference, Via was awarded the Green Building Star Award in the area of Best Green Commercial New Construction in recognition of demonstrated excellence in sustainable construction and design for its facility. The award was given by the Colorado Green Builders Guild, an organization of building professionals dedicated to the education and promotion of high standards of green building design and materials use.
Via’s 53,000 square-foot facility incorporates green building features including:
- a 97KW grid-connected solar photovoltaic system
- low-VOC interior finishes and extensive daylight harvesting
- extensive use of recycled materials
- a radiant heat floor slab in the maintenance area
- a heat recovery wheel and indirect and direct evaporative coolers as the HVAC system
- domestic water heater utilizes no gas or electric source of energy
- self-dimming and occupancy sensing lighting throughout the building
- building envelope exceeds all compliance standards for wall and roof insulation and window glazing properties
- a computerized Energy Management Control system provides 24-hour monitoring of all mechanical and plumbing systems
Via hired MKK Consulting Engineers to conduct a retro-commissioning of all the energy systems in the building in 2012. The retro-commissioning was done to evaluate and ensure that all systems were optimized and working as promised by the original energy modeling recommendations.