West 27th receives LEED platinum certification


West 27th Place was awarded platinum Leadership in Energy Environment Development platinum certification  Thursday, becoming the first housing complex in Southern California to receive the environmental recognition.

Gone green · West 27th Place was built with the goal of achieving platinum certification, which has the strictest standards for sustainability. - Carlo Acenas | Daily Trojan

The U.S. Green Building Council awards the LEED platinum certification to buildings that meet the council’s highest standard of sustainability features, according to a press release from the management of West 27th Place.

West 27th Place, located on Figueroa Street, was built with the goal of achieving the certification.

“We are honored to receive such a high-level distinction from LEED and hope that we can be trendsetters in having the remainder of the student housing industry follow suit,” Al Rabil, managing partner of West 27th Place’s property group, said in the release.

The building’s managers estimate they cut 95 percent of construction-related waste by using modular building, a process in which units are built off-site and assembled at the building. The complex has Energy Star-compliant appliances, a salt water pool and an irrigation system for water conservation.