Green Buildings – New Construction
The County’s voluntary green building program uses the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED® green building rating system as a standard to measure the comprehensive green approach of each project. Site plan projects are development projects seeking a special exception to the Zoning Ordinance and are eligible for participation in the program. Each project is evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
- Technical components of the Green Building Density Incentive Program
- Implementation of the Green Building Program
- Green Building Site Plan Conditions
- LEED Permit Submission Requirements for Site Plan Projects
- EarthCraft Submission Requirements for affordable housing projects receiving VHDA funding
Green Building Bonus Density Program
New development project teams may request additional bonus density and/or height in exchange for a minimum level of energy savings and LEED green building certification as follows:
| LEED Level | Prior to June 16, 2012 | After June 16, 2012 | ||
| Office | Residential | Office – 20% EE | Residential – 18% EE | |
| Certified | 0.05 FAR | 0.10 FAR | n/a | n/a |
| Silver | 0.15 FAR | 0.20 FAR | 0.20 FAR | 0.25 FAR |
| Gold | 0.35 | 0.4 | 0.35 | 0.4 |
| Platinum | 0.45 | 0.5 | 0.45 | 0.5 |
Energy Efficiency (EE) – All levels of LEED certification, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, will require the minimum level of energy savings above the baseline ASHRAE 90.1-2007 standard as defined under LEED EA credit 1 – Optimize Energy Performance in the LEED 2009 rating system.
Floor Area Ratio (FAR) is defined as the gross floor area (square feet) divided by (÷) site area for density purposes.
An additional 0.10 FAR may be awarded to buildings that commit to LEED certification plus either ENERGY STAR building certification or LEED for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) certification, both of which are based on actual energy usage.
All bonus density project owners will also be asked to provide ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager utility reporting data after occupancy each year for 10 years. These data are provided for informational purposes only.
Learn more about Arlington County’s Green Building Program History here.
