Letter to the Editor: "Struggle for the LEED"

Dear Editor,

I read with interest the front page article “Struggle for the LEED” in the most recent edition of The Scroll (October 13, 2010). The article posed some questions about why the LEED Gold plaque was taken down and, I suspect, there are more questions since the plaque is once again on display in the Koch Center. To set the record straight, the Koch Center is a LEED Gold facility.

So why was the plaque taken down?While we have done some modest work to the facility that is visible, we have also done additional work “behind the walls” on the building’s lighting, heating, and air distribution systems. The performance of these systems is a prerequisite to earning and maintaining our LEED status and, since there was some risk to the outcome, we were not comfortable displaying the plaque until we were sure we got the desired results.When we received the consulting engineer’s report that these systems were performing to standard and as expected, our LEED Gold plaque was again put on display for all to see.

Joseph P. Manory ’80

Chief Financial Officer

Deerfield Academy