LAX's Airport Police Facility Achieves LEED Gold Status from the U.S. Green Building Council

Designation Marks the Second Time an LAX Project has Earned LEED Gold Certification in the Past Month

Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) is celebrating another sustainability success with Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)’s Airport Police Facility (APF) achieving LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The recognition follows LAX’s Consolidated Rent-A-Car (ConRAC) facility attaining LEED Gold certification from USGBC earlier this month. Designed to adhere to CalGreen Tier 1, the APF’s newest designation is a globally recognized touchstone. As a hub of public safety and security at LAX, the 165,300 square foot facility houses the largest police agency in the United States dedicated exclusively to 24-hour airport activity.

© Benny Chan | Fotoworks. Courtesy Los Angeles World Airports.

“LAWA is committed to sustainable design and infrastructure, and to have two projects recognized with LEED Gold certification back-to-back is a testament to our progress. With new initiatives on the way as a part of LAX’s multi-billion-dollar Capital Improvement Program, we are continuing to create an airport where environmental and economic pledges move beyond policy into reality,” said Justin Erbacci, Chief Executive Officer, LAWA. “I am very grateful to our partners at SOM and Hensel Phelps, and to our LAWA Police Department and entire LAWA project team, for helping us achieve this latest accomplishment.”

Through LAX’s transformation, LAWA is continuing its longstanding commitment to advancing sustainability in the built environment and airport operations. In 2007, LAWA formalized its stance on the topic with the publication of its Sustainability Vision and Principles. These values were further bolstered in 2017 with the ratification of LAWA’s Sustainable Design and Construction Policy that dictates that all new building construction, major facility renovation projects, and non-building landside and airside projects be designed and built to achieve LEED Silver or higher.

At the APF, innovative construction and sustainability strategies including a dual-piping system for recycled water use, an integrated photovoltaic solar array, a 960-stall parking structure with features that mitigate environmental impacts and a 12-foot-wide paseo landscaped with native and drought-resistant plants at the building’s southern edge are all factors that contributed to the building being recognized with LEED Gold certification.

© Benny Chan | Fotoworks. Courtesy Los Angeles World Airports.

“LAX’s new Airport Police Facility opened a little over a year and a half ago, and since then, my team, members of the surrounding community and I have enjoyed the benefits of greater efficiency, safety and sustainability because of the building’s design,” said Los Angeles Airport Police Chief Cecil W. Rhambo Jr. “Being headquartered in a LEED Gold certified facility brings even more satisfaction to our work of ensuring the safe and secure operations of the airport.“

To further improve the communication and coordination of essential public safety services provided by the Airport Police, the facility also includes space for APD Office of Operations, Office of Support Services, Office of Homeland Security and Intelligence, Emergency Service Unit, Traffic and Security Group, Bomb Disposal Unit and K-9 Unit. Furthermore, a multi-purpose community room at the facility’s entrance creates a forum for public dialogue and engagement.

“LAX’s Airport Police Facility was created in collaboration with LAWA and the building’s users, resulting in an efficient design, in both materials and energy consumption,” said José Luis Palacios, Design Principal, SOM. “Responding to the site’s topography, the facility is a long and low, yet elegant design that is respectful of its neighborhood.”

Interested parties can learn more about LAX’s campus-wide transformation and subscribe for project updates at bit.ly/LAX-Transformation.

PROJECT TEAM

• Design Architect: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)*
• Design-Build Lead: Hensel Phelps Construction
• Structural Engineer: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)*
• Sustainability Consultant: Thornton Tomasetti
• Landscape Architect: Studio-MLA*
• Interior Design: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)*
• Lighting: Horton Lees Brogden*
• Civil Engineer: PacRim Engineering*
• Mechanical Design: Syska Hennessy
• Electrical Design: PBS*
• Plumbing Design: Syska Hennessy
• Environmental Graphics: Kaminski Kaneko Design*
• Acoustics: Veneklasen*
• Police Consultant: Schrader Group

*Local and/or XBE Business Enterprises