Planning in the West
Seattle Planning Director: We’ve Tried to Set an Example
Diane Sugimura will speak at NewWest’s Boise conference this week
By Jill Kuraitis, 6-15-09
It’s easy to see why the city of Seattle has had success in setting green standards in building and development, once you talk to Diane Sugimura.
Seattle’s director of planning and development is an infectious voice for environmentally-friendly building, with a notable depth and breadth of knowledge of her subject and the ability to put things in meaningful and interesting terms.
Sugimura will bring terrific value to “Planning in the West” the latest in NewWest’s series of regional planning conferences to be held Wednesday and Thursday at BSU’s Stueckle Sky Center.
“Seattle is called the Emerald City in the Evergreen State, so there has been a strong environmental ethic here since the 1970s,” she said. Policy protecting shorelines came first, then residential building policy. The 1980s saw the beginning of environmental regulations in commercial building, she said.
2000 was the real beginning of setting city policies that reached for an LEED Silver certification for all new building. (read about LEED ratings, below).
“Sending our planning teams to Denmark and Sweden to see what could be done was a major step in inspiring designers and developers,” Sugimura said. Even the loudest critic of the green building idea, after a trip to those countries, got on board. “People come back committed,” she said.
Sugimura is proud of how many people in city planning and development have been accredited under LEED. “Even some of our inspectors, who then educate people in the field when they go out on jobs,” she said.
The story of how her department, working with the private sector, got the Seattle City Council to pass a policy package that was even “greener” than what was asked will be part of her presentation at the conference.
Please be in touch if you’d like to attend “Planning in the West” by emailing
What is LEED certification?
LEED certification is a recognition that a construction project or building can attain by utilizing environmentally friendly building practices during construction or remodeling. LEED is the acronym that stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and is the Green Building Rating System developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. The model was developed in 1998 to encourage environmental awareness amongst government agencies, architects, engineers, developers, and builders.
LEED certification can be attained on four different levels, which are determined by a credit, or point, system. The levels of LEED certification are Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. A building or project can attain LEED certification by submitting an application that documents compliance with the requirements set for in the LEED rating system. The Green Building Council issues LEED certification upon satisfactory application, review and compliance verification. There are fees associated with LEED certification.
While design and construction of buildings have used environmentally friendly practices in the past, LEED was developed to provide a streamlined set of building standards. The government has worked to model sustainable green building by achieving certification on many of its state buildings. In order to increase the number of new and redeveloped buildings eligible for LEED certification, the government also offers many incentives within the building industry, including grant funding and tax breaks based on the level of LEED certification attained.
LEED professional accreditation is also attainable by individuals, contractors, project managers, and other industry professionals. Professional accreditation demonstrates that an individual or company is well-versed in the LEED system and can work with other individuals and developers to oversee the building process and follow guidelines to attain LEED certification.
Some of the practices utilized or observed for LEED certification include the use of recycled material, eliminating or reducing the amount of waste leaving a job site, re-using existing material, using sustainable green building material, and using low-emitting materials such as caulk and sealers.
LEED certification can be achieved in both new construction, as well as renovations. The Green Building Council has given LEED certification to a number of new construction projects in the state of California including the Department of Motor Vehicles in San Ysidro and the Department of Education in Sacramento, both of which are Gold certified. Many other states can also boast LEED certified government buildings and certification has also been widely achieved within the private sector as well.
Jill, Seattle truly is the American Emerald City. In fact, it's in some ways superior that one given to us by Louis B. Mayer. You can't get good coffee in the Land of Oz. Though Seattle as a vast Green fantasyland does fit your analogy. I would think the City Council does in some respects resemble the Lollypop Guild. Did they ever get the streets plowed last winter? I know there was a problem with the use of salt on the streets. It wasn't good for the fish in Puget Sound, or something. And I would think they'll be following San Francisco's lead in apocalyptic recycling. Do it right or face exile on Alcatraz. Cheers.
Comment By horst, 6-15-09Somebody told me you were a writer, croak. I searched my memories and found a certain similarity between your posts and the cartoon Mallard Fillmore
Comment By Bill Croke, 6-15-09Horst, Hey, I like Mallard Fillmore too. I read it right after Doonesbury.
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