Monroe County to build 45,000 s/f LEED Silver crime lab: $30 million project

Monroe County will begin construction on a new four-story, 45,000 s/f LEED Silver crime lab which will be located in the downtown area. The building will be constructed on the site of a current parking lot. The city is contributing $1 million to the project. The project cost is $30 million. The tentative project members include: * The Pike Co. to provide construction management and LEED consulting services for $139,000. * DeWolff Partnership Architects will design the exterior of the building. * LaBella Associates will provide engineering design. Construction contracts will be out for bid in May and awarded in September by the county. The ground breaking is scheduled for October. Current funding for the project includes the following: * NYSERDA: $100,000 grant. * DOJ: $4.6 million contribution. * DASNY: $10.2 million contribution. A LEED Silver designation will be pursued by the county from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The green aspects of the project will include a white roof, recycled-content and locally sourced structural building materials, a graywater irrigation system, and reserved parking for hybrid vehicles and bicycles. These features will add $700,000 to construction costs. The project is also under consideration for stimulus dollars by the office of governor David Paterson. The crime lab performs DNA analysis of crime scene investigations. The lab also stores a large amount of data on their computers which is causing a space crunch at the current 19,000 s/f existing lab.