Just three months before breaking ground on a new $172-million headquarters, the California Environmental Protection Agency is facing criticism that its planned 25-story tower fails to meet the tough environmental standards it typically enforces.
State officials are now scrambling to revise building plans before July in hopes of turning the proposed tower near the state Capitol into a "green" showcase.
The sprawling agency, whose air, water and waste divisions lay down some of the toughest environmental standards in the nation, is finalizing a last-minute $75,000 contract with a leading environmental consultant to review the building's design and recommend improvements. Additional consulting services could double that cost, and officials have no idea how much any building improvements could add to the cost of the project.
"This should have been a true green building [from the start]," said Assemblywoman Debra Bowen (D-Marina del Rey), who chairs the Assembly's Natural Resources Committee. She began pressuring state officials last year to include more energy-efficient design features.
"We're trying to push other state and private agencies and local companies to do a better job with preventative, Earth-easy design, and you do it by showcasing these practices."
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The building's architect, David Martin of A.C. Martin Partners of Los Angeles, passionately defends the original plans, saying the building is well-designed and a model of energy efficiency. The firm, whose founders designed Los Angeles City Hall among other notable local structures, has already added several environmentally friendly touches at the urging of Cal/EPA.
B.B. Blevins, Cal/EPA undersecretary representing the agency in the design process, said his agency and the state "all have an interest in making this building go the extra mile--to make it not just upper edge but place it on the cutting edge, and make it extraordinary."
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The tower, scheduled to be completed by 2001, will sit across from Sacramento City Hall and, along with a new federal courthouse currently under construction, will help redefine the capital's cityscape. It will house 3,500 state workers and the agency's six environmental control boards, with room to accommodate other departments.
