Bozeman – One of the most heavily used buildings at Montana State University
is the first state- and university-owned structure to receive LEED Silver
Certification for its sustainable building design, construction and
operation, according to university and state officials.

Gov. Brian Schweitzer and MSU President Waded Cruzado will commemorate the
LEED Silver Certification received by MSU’s Gaines Hall at a ceremony at
1:15 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 26 in the Gaines lobby. The public is invited to
attend. Light refreshments will be served.

The 80,000-square-foot Gaines Hall was renovated between 2008 and 2010,
transforming the antiquated, 50-year-old building into a state-of-the-art
teaching facility. Gaines is used by nearly every MSU undergraduate at some
point during their academic career. It is home to University Studies, a
300-seat lecture hall, and laboratories for chemistry, biochemistry,
geochemistry, biology, physics, earth sciences and modern languages.

LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. It is an
internationally recognized green building certification program developed by
the U.S. Green Building Council. With the LEED Silver Certification, Gaines
Hall also become the highest certified state- and university owned building
in Montana.

“Sustainability is a very important issue for our students and so it’s
fitting that our first LEED certified building on campus is a hub of student
learning,” said Walt Banziger, director of MSU’s planning, design and
construction department.

The $32.5 million renovation was funded with appropriations from the 2005
and 2007 Montana Legislatures and was championed by Gov. Brian Schweitzer
and local legislators.

“This award is a significant confirmation of the high-level commitment to
sustainability we’ve been practicing and demonstrates the capabilities of
the exceptionally dedicated team of professionals who managed, designed, and
renovated this facility,” said Russ Katherman, Gaines project manager with
the Architecture and Engineering Division in the Montana Department of
Administration.

LEED Silver Certification of Gaines Hall was based on a number of green
design and construction features including:
. Using reflective material, planting nearby trees and reducing the
amount of paving around the building in order reduce the building’s
“heat-island” effect;
. 52 percent reduction in water usage compared to an average building
of comparable size;
. Near 70 percent energy costs savings  in optimized performance
through highly efficient building materials and high-performance mechanical
and electrical systems compared to an average building of comparable size;
. Use of regional materials – the concrete block was supplied by Kanta
Products from Three Forks — along with 85 percent of wood being from
certified sustainable forests; and
. Diverting more than 85 percent of all construction waste away from
landfills to recyclers. This amounted to 1,967 tons or the rough equivalent
of 16 Boeing 757-200 jets loaded with several hundred passengers each

Gaines Hall, built between 1957 and 1961, was named after P.C. Gaines, who
worked 43 years in the chemistry department, was a master teacher and served
four times as acting president of MSU. The renovation project architect was
Dowling-Sandholm Architects. The general contractor was BN Builders, Inc.