Crossposted from KC Justice Youth

King County Juvenile Detention, in partnership with Interagency Academy, hosted Michael Bennett of the Seattle Seahawks, his wife Pele, and other members of the Bennett Foundation to inaugurate the new Bennett Foundation Garden located within the detention facility. Built by Interagency Academy students at our Opportunity Skyway site in Georgetown with a $5,000 grant provided by the Bennett Foundation, the garden seeks to provide students with an opportunity to learn about growing food, healthy eating, and biology through hands-on gardening and art experiences.

The project represents a unique partnership between the Foundation, King County, Interagency Academy (Seattle Public Schools), the King County detention kitchen, and community volunteers. The food in the garden will be planted, maintained, and harvested by students, and will be used in the kitchen to feed the very students who grew the food. This farm-to-table project is also intended to provide a therapeutic educational experience for our students, many of whom have undergone significant trauma in their lives. Funding from the Bennett Foundation is also supporting the design, painting, and installation of food- and nutrition-themed art murals for the detention garden area. These will be created and painted by students in detention with the support of teachers and community volunteers.

Read more at KC Justice Youth

This article is featured courtesy of Project Manager Milton Huertas, King County International Airport, Department of Transportation

As directed by the Green Building Ordinance and Strategic Climate Action Plan Green Building Goal Area, King County-owned buildings and infrastructure will be built, maintained and operated consistent with the highest green building and sustainable development practices.

Thanks to the project team and airport staff, the Main Terminal Building at King County International Airport/Boeing Field has just undergone a deep energy efficiency retrofit. The project is planned to achieve a Platinum level rating using the King County Sustainable Infrastructure Scorecard.

The work included replacement of rooftop multi‐zone air handlers and installation of new Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF ‐ high tech heat pump) systems, heat recovery ventilator (HRV) and dedicated outdoor air system (DOAS), as well as a change to LED lighting. In 2004, during a complete building remodel, new insulation and energy efficient glazing were installed, but the HVAC units were retained because of lifecycle service and cost. Replacement of the older units provides for a new state of the art energy system that is anticipated to reduce the heating and cooling cost by $19,335 per year.

The new lighting upgrades save $3,200 per year, which is a 47 percent energy cost reduction. The project is supported by a $300K state Energy Efficiency Commerce Grant. The HRV units were purchased at a 50 percent discount as part of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) program.

Initial estimates on savings the from design phase indicate a savings of 391,499 KWH annually in electricity usage and 26,105 therms annually in natural gas savings. In addition, the projected greenhouse gas emissions savings from the project is 388.44 MTCO2e per year from operations.

In King County, the second greatest source of greenhouse gas emissions is from energy used to heat, cool, and power our homes and buildings. Not only does this Main Terminal Building retrofit reduce costs, it significantly reduces energy use. This supports the County goal of reducing government operational energy use in County buildings and facilities by an additional ten percent in the next decade, as described in the Strategic Climate Action plan.

Click through the photos below to learn more about the project.