GAITHERSBURG, MD (March 24, 2016) – Huguenot High School, Richmond’s first new high school in nearly 50 years, has officially achieved LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. Designed by Moseley Architects and completed by HESS in 2015, the project was slated to achieve LEED Silver – ultimately, all credits submitted were approved by USGBC for a total of 47 points.

HESS provided Construction Manager at Risk services for the three-story, 250,000-SF new Huguenot High School. The facility supports a core capacity of 1,400 students and houses traditional classrooms, specialty laboratory spaces, a 1,000-seat auditorium, 500-seat dinning commons, a media center, television studio, distance learning center, 2D and 3D art rooms, a ceramics workshop, culinary arts space, and administrative areas. Athletic features include a 2,000-seat gymnasium, 3,500 seat football stadium, and competition baseball, softball and tennis facilities.

The project, performed for the City of Richmond Public Schools system, was managed by AECOM who was tasked with replacing the original Huguenot High School, built in 1970. HESS broke ground on the new structure, located on the site adjacent to the occupied school, in 2012 and delivered the facility in time for students to occupy in January 2015.

“We would not have been able to achieve LEED Gold without the tremendous efforts of HESS Construction and Moseley Architects,” said Michael McIntyre, Vice President for AECOM. “They did an exceptional job managing and tracking all necessary LEED documentation throughout the construction phase of the Huguenot High School project. Their knowledge of the LEED Rating System and LEED Online allowed for a seamless submission and award of LEED Gold. AECOM is grateful to the HESS and Moseley teams for helping to achieve the highest possible LEED certification and delivering a high-quality facility for Richmond students.”

Highlighted sustainable features of the facility include:

• Low-flow plumbing fixtures which reduce potable water use and wastewater volume by over 40%, saving almost 770,000 gallons of water per year for the City of Richmond
• A highly-efficient irrigation system for the school’s expansive athletic facilities, which saves an additional 625,000 gallons of potable water annually for the City
• Significant lifecycle energy savings, with a reduction of 39% over the building’s lifetime as compared to the baseline (a minimally code-compliant building)
• Nearly 90% of the construction and demolition waste was recycled or salvaged, with almost 15,000 tons diverted from local landfills
• 20% of the new building materials are made from recycled content and/or were regionally manufactured;
• 90% of the wood materials were harvested from sustainably managed forests;
• All adhesives, sealants, paints, flooring, and composite wood inside the building are lowemitting materials to improve indoor air quality;
• 90% of the occupied spaces have a view to the outside, increasing daylighting to the building’s interior

About HESS Construction
Founded in 1978, HESS Construction manages the planning, design, and construction of facilities for public and private clients in Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Virginia. The company’s services span preconstruction, construction management, general contracting and design-build, with a focus on K-12, Higher Education, Community Facilities, Municipalities, Government and Health Care. Headquartered in Gaithersburg, MD, HESS employs nearly 80 highly skilled professionals and continues to position itself for strategic growth. Combining construction experience with an innovative approach to understanding client needs, HESS builds facilities through collaboration, teamwork and quality.