How a 75-year-old Courthouse Became the GSA's Paragon of Sustainability

Chris Bentley explains how San Antonio's Beaux Arts federal courthouse became an unlikely paragon of the GSA's sustainability efforts while balancing a sensitive historic renovation.

1 minute read

April 7, 2013, 7:00 AM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


Bentley examines how, in their renovation of the building built in 1937 across from the Alamo, St. Louis-based architecture firm Trivers Associates "was able to strike just the right balance, earning the project a LEED Platinum certification without disturbing Texas’ most hallowed ground."

"Completed last summer, the Hipolito F. Garcia Federal Building and United States Courthouse became the first LEED Platinum building owned by the General Services Administration (GSA). The architects employed standard energy-saving techniques, sealing the building’s envelope and upgrading the building’s systems to high-efficiency mechanical and electrical ones, while striving to revive the building’s unique character."

Friday, April 5, 2013 in The Architect's Newspaper

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

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