Robinson Nature Center Earns Awards for Excellence in Construction and Sustainability

County Executive Ken Ulman announced on October 11 that the Robinson Nature Center has been recognized by the Associated General Contractors (AGC) as the “Best Sustainability Project of the Year for New Construction.”  Representatives from Howard County Government as well as Forrester Construction, the prime contractor awarded to construct the County’s state-of-the-art nature center, will be honored at the 11th annual AGC Washington Contractor Awards Ceremony this month. 

In addition to receiving the Best Sustainability Project of the Year, the Robinson Nature Center has also won the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) 2011 “Excellence in Construction” Award. 

“One of the overarching goals of this project was to incorporate green building principles into the design and construction of the Robinson Nature Center, and I am proud to say we put our thoughts into action,” said County Executive Ulman.  “We knew this Center was going to be special from the moment we broke ground, and I want to thank Forrester Construction for bringing this project to life and enabling us to create one of the greenest facilities in the Mid-Atlantic.” 

The three story nature center is on track to become LEED Certified Platinum, an internationally recognized, green building certification system.  Among the green elements included at the Robinson Nature Center are: solar panels to offset the building’s energy costs; pervious paving which helps recharge groundwater and reduces runoff that carries contaminants into waterways; a green roof which helps the building keep cool; and a geothermal HVAC which is projected to cut heating and cooling energy use by 30% over a conventional air source heat pump system.