Brian C. Nevin Welcome Center

LEED Certified Gold

The new Cornell Botanic Gardens Brian C. Nevin Welcome Center was designed by the celebrated Canadian architects Baird Sampson Neuert. The welcome center was the crowning achievement of recent improvements to infrastructure and visitor services.

On the LEED-certified scorecard, Nevin Welcome Center scored 47 out of 69 possible points. For a full breakdown, review the report on the US Green Buildings Certification (USGBC) website.

Project Highlights

• Instead of relying on forced air systems, the welcome center makes use of the stack effect where cool air fresh air is drawn into the building at a lower level and warmer air is exhausted from the building roof
• A rooftop evacuated tube solar thermal array installed on the building roof provides hot water used in the building's radiant heating system. While the array cannot supply the entire heating supply demand, it significantly reduces the energy needed to heat the building during the winter months
• The building's orientation and location take advantage of several natural features. The southern exposure promotes natural daylight entering the space, while the northern exposure is built into the earthen hillside to take advantage of the naturally insulated qualities
• The exterior wooden solar shades allow low-angle winter light to penetrate and heat the space while during summer months high angle light is blocked, keeping the space cool
• Bioswales slow stormwater runoff and infiltrate the water into the soil. The landscape installed in the bioswale is comprised of native and adaptive species that require no irrigation to sustain. In addition, the flowering plants installed encourage insects and wildlife to establish a healthy habitat in what could otherwise be a monoculture-developed location

Check Out the Brian C. Nevin Welcome Center