Greenville Clinic Goes “Green” With Energy-Efficient Focus
You wouldn’t know it by looking, but the walls of the new Affinity Health System clinic in Greenville are insulated with old blue jeans.
Yes, you read that correctly: blue jeans. It’s just a small part of the clinic’s sustainable design plan. The clinic incorporates environmentally friendly, sustainable concepts followed by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System.
“We have tried to reduced or eliminate the impact that this building has on the environment. We looked at integrating our mission and values in the construction of this clinic,” says Gary Kusnierz, director of construction and development for Menasha-based Affinity. “We wanted to build an environmentally friendly clinic. We want to be good stewards in all that we do, including with the environment.” Once the Greenville clinic receives its LEED certification, it will be the first health clinic in the state to do so, Kusnierz said. To qualify for the LEED designation, the clinic must have:
“A lot of people hear about the jeans in the walls, but that’s just one unique thing about this place,” Kusnierz says. “For example, we used building materials from a 500-mile radius and a lot of the stuff can be reused in future projects. For example when the carpeting gets old, it can be melted down and turned into new carpeting.”
Affinity worked closely with Boldt Construction on the project. The Appleton company has experience building LEED certified facilities. Now that the Greenville clinic is open, Kusnierz says Affinity hopes to do a study to see if the extra costs associated with building “green” are set off by lower energy costs.
Kusnierz says the lessons learned at the Greenville clinic will be shared with other projects, such as Affinity’s new clinic going up in Little Chute as well as the St. Elizabeth Hospital remodeling and expansion project.
“This is a philosophy from here on out we’re going to follow as a company,” he says. “But while this is a unique way to design and build a building, it isn’t affecting how we treat our patients. In fact, we think that what we’re doing - creating a building with lots of natural light and greenery - will actually improve how our patients are feeling. Hopefully, they’ll be less stressed and that’s good for everyone.”