March 30, 2007

Area utility to unveil 'green' compound

Maricopa residents will soon be able to pay their water bills and learn about the water reclamation and recycling processes in one location.

Global Water expects to complete construction in May on its Global Water Center - a combined county office headquarters and educational facility - on 35 acres at El Dorado Parkway and the yet-to-be developed Powers Parkway in Maricopa.

The $5 million project is the first utility company in Pinal County to be built in accordance with the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System. The system is the national benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. Its key elements are sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.

"Many components of the facility will appear conventional when completed, but will actually reduce its impact on our environment," said Wesley Smith, vice president of engineering and construction for Phoenix-based Global Water. "For example, the roofing system, insulation and exterior walls have been constructed from products which use recycled household products like Styrofoam trays and aluminum cans.

"Effective natural lighting and window placements (will) decrease annual electricity use and increase comfort and flexibility in workspaces. Additional energy savings (will be) achieved with a well-designed HVAC (system)."

The project includes an 18,500-square-foot office structure and an adjacent 4,000-square-foot maintenance building housing a two-ton crane. Fifty to sixty company employees, including some in the compliance, laboratory, operations, maintenance, engineering, construction, customer service and administrative departments, will be relocated to the site.

A couple of acres of land are earmarked for research to be conducted by the company in conjunction with the University of Arizona and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The area will be irrigated with recycled water.

"It will be an actual science experiment," said Paul Walker, a spokesman for the project. "For example, we would like to create a golf-course quality grass that never needs potable water."

Additionally, educational exhibits will be open to the public.

"It will be like a museum," Smith said. "We are producing a video about the world water situation, including the situation in the Southwest. Another video will explain what LEED is. There will also be displays about Ak-Chin, and windows (one positioned low for children and a higher one for adults) where people can actually view the control system and learn about the demands upon it in Pinal County.

"This building is the leading edge of water reclamation and reuse. It will use 80 percent less water than a typical building," he added. "It will be our Pinal County home forever, and we are excited about it."

Adolfson Peterson Construction is the contractor for the project, which broke ground in January 2006. Deutsch Associates is the architect.

"The construction elements and colors selected are based on the context of adjacent residential character, incorporating stucco surfaces, standing-seam metal roofing, painted steel, and stone accents," said David Calcaterra, project manager for the design firm.

Nearby on the same acreage is Global's water reclamation facility, which serves Pinal County north of Ak-Chin. It opened in January 2006 and currently services 10,700 residences. Three million gallons of wastewater are treated at the site each day.

Another reclamation plant is under construction and expected to open in May, south of Ak-Chin. A total of seven such facilities are planned in the county, according to Smith. Each plant, he pointed out, is designed to treat one million gallons of wastewater daily and can be incrementally adjusted to handle as many as nine million gallons per day.

Smith is confident that Global Water is well-prepared for growth in the county.

"It's all about sustainability and regional planning," he said.

©Casa Grande Valley Newspapers Inc. 2007