To celebrate the AIA 2009 National Convention host city and its commitment to sustainable design, the AIA has partnered with Mayor Gavin Newsom to select “San Francisco’s Greenest” buildings. The AIA San Francisco chapter and city representatives identified a cross-section of building types and uses that represent the diversity of green buildings in San Francisco. The announcement comes on the heels of Mayor Newsom’s signing of a groundbreaking green building ordinance to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in San Francisco.

“San Francisco continues to be at the forefront of the green building movement,” said Mayor Newsom. “These projects emphasize conservation and attempt to tackle the city’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 20 percent by 2012.”

On behalf of the mayor, John Rahaim, director of the San Francisco Planning Department, announced the selected buildings at a pre-convention ceremony April 29 at one of the 10 honored buildings, the San Francisco Friends School. Joining him at the lectern were AIA Executive Vice President/CEO Chris McEntee and Catherine Hunter, head of the San Francisco Friends School.

“Collectively these buildings showcase exemplary sustainable design techniques that reduce the environmental impacts of buildings on human health and the natural environment,” McEntee said. “We are pleased to partner with the mayor’s office and honor these buildings for their commitment to green design and hope that existing structures and buildings under new construction follow in the footsteps of San Francisco’s Greenest.”

San Francisco’s Greenest program celebrates projects that make a positive contribution to their communities and reduce environmental impacts through strategies such as reuse of existing structures, energy and water conservation, and the use of sustainable and renewable construction materials.

The San Francisco’s Greenest list includes buildings that are certified by the USGBC LEED™ as well as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star Program. The program also honored landmark historic preservation projects that exemplify sustainability strategies through energy retrofits, procurement, and operations.

Throughout the week, students from the San Francisco Friends School and the Wilderness Arts and Literacy Collaborative (WALC) created sidewalk art recognizing the AIA Walk the Walk sustainable design initiative, including chalk tracings of the Walk the Walk logo, which signifies the AIA’s mission of reducing fossil fuel consumption and achieving carbon neutrality.

In addition to announcing San Francisco’s Greenest, the AIA program also recognized the San Francisco chapter headquarters at 130 Sutter Street, which recently received LEED-CI Gold certification for their commitment to sustainable design and eco-friendly practices.

San Francisco’s Greenest

355 Eleventh Street, by Aidlin Darling Design, on track to be the city’s first LEED-NC Gold building.

555 Mission Street, by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates and Heller Manus Architects, San Francisco’s first LEED Gold-certified speculative high-rise development.

California Academy of Science, by Renzo Piano Building Workshop and Stantec, the largest public LEED Platinum-rated building in the world.

Forest Hill Clubhouse, designed by Bernard Maybeck in 1919.

La Casa Verde, by John Lum Architecture Inc., the 2007 Sunset Idea Homeand 2008 Pacific Coast Building Conference demonstration home.

New Resource Bank, by hooks ASD, the first bank in California to have a LEED-Gold CI rating.

Orchard Garden Hotel, by Architecture International, San Francisco’s first hotel to earn LEED certification.

Plaza Apartments, by Leddy Maytum Stacy Architects & Paulett Taggart Architects, in Association, one of the city’s first green affordable housing developments.

San Francisco Friends School, by Pfau Long Architecture with Page and Turnbull, a conversion of the historic, all wood, Levi Strauss Building originally built in 1906.

UCSF Health Sciences West (HSW) Department of Pathology, by The Design Partnership LLP, a newly renovated lab.