Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center Awarded LEED Gold for Existing Buildings - Operations and Maintenance

The Greater Fort Lauderdale/Broward County Convention Center has earned a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance from the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI), a branch of the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

It is the first convention center in Florida to get any LEED corroboration and only one of three buildings in the country to earn a LEED Gold for an Existing Building.

The process of transformation of the Convention Center to make it eligible for LEED Gold under the Existing Buildings category began way back in 2008 with ardent effort from the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention& Visitors Bureau and the Broward County Board of County Commissioners besides dedication from SMG to transform the 600,000-square-foot structure into a power-saving and environmentally friendly structure with no carbon footprints. To achieve this, the first step was hiring Sustainable Options, Green building specialist, to scrutinize the structure’s current energy utilization and environmental practices. Sustainable Options put in consistent efforts into the Convention Center throughout the entire LEED corroboration procedure with complete cooperation from all wings of the Convention Center. From then on, various eco-friendly improvements have been adopted by the Convention Center in its day-to-day functioning, starting from the usage of water to lighting, recycling, power saving and much more.

The Broward County Convention Center is situated in 17 ac of land at the north end of Port Everglades, which is the world’s second biggest cruise port. It has accommodated more than 5 million guests and over 5500 meetings since its opening in 1991. It has been maintained by SMG since 1989.

Source: http://www.ftlauderdalecc.com/