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©2011 Boise Parks & Recreation 04/11
Welcome to the Foothills Learning Center- Let’s Take a Tour!Our tour starts in the lobby. That great mural you see on the walls is by local artist Ward Hooper. It shows
a panoramic view of the foothills with native wildlife and plants. And yes, that is a real stuffed mountain lion. Off the lobby near the front door are the restrooms. We conserve water by using low-flow toilets that use up to 70% less water and low-flow faucets that use as much as 50% less water.
Come See Our ClassroomFrom the lobby, enter the classroom on the east side of the building (toward the front).
We have three walls of high performance windows that let in lots of natural light. They help keep warm air out during the summer and in during the winter. The frames have a thermal break (insulator) between the double panes of glass. They are also glazed with an invisible metal coating that slows absorption of heat. If you look up toward the ceiling, you’ll see the clerestory windows along the south side of the building. These windows
increase the natural daylight year-round, which decreases the need for artificial light. We used dark-colored concrete floors because they soak up heat from the sunlight during the day and release it back into the room at night. This is called thermal
mass, and it helps us conserve energy throughout the year. As you leave the room, check out the light switches. They have a sensor that detects motion in the room and turns the lights on and off automatically. The light switches can also be manually adjusted to increase or decrease the brightness of the lights.
Another one of our features, the zoned heating and cooling system, helps reduce the energy used to maintain a comfortable temperature in each room. Sensors throughout the building and dampers in the ductwork send warm or cool air only where it is needed. This can result in a savings of 30% or more.
Cross the Lobby to Our Conference RoomIn this room, you can see another feature of the passive solar system: the blinds. By opening and closing the blinds, we can control the amount of light and heat entering the room. Look through the windows in the back of the room to see the mechanical room with the air-handling equipment for the Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP). The GSHP is our heating and cooling system. It uses the Earth to help provide heat in the winter and cooling in the summer, using less energy than
standard systems. How? About six feet below the ground, the temperature stays a relatively constant 50-55 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the year. When the building was constructed, 8,000 feet of pipe was buried at this depth creating a closed-loop system. Liquid circulates through these pipes and through the air-handling system you’re looking at. In summer the building’s heat is dissipated into the ground; in
winter the 50 degree liquid preheats our inside air. The furniture in this room was made locally with very thin-cut wood known as veneer.
By using veneers, the builder was able to use smaller-scale trees, helping to preserve old growth forests. In a veneer, more of the cut lumber is used for the finished product, minimizing the waste.
3188 Sunset Peak RoadBoise, Idaho 83702
208.493.2530Fax: 208.493.2539
TDD/TTY: 800.377.3529www.BoiseEnvironmentalEducation.org
Mailing Address:Foothills Learning Center
1104 Royal Blvd.Boise, Idaho 83706-2840
Living Lighter on the LandA Tour of the
Foothills Learning Center
PartnersThe Foothills Learning Center would not have been built without help from our partners, donors, and friends. The organizations below collaborated with the City of Boise by contributing money, land, time and/or materials to make this building and everything we do inside of it possible.
Ada County Boise Corporation Boise National Forest Bureau of Land Management City of Boise Golden Eagle Audubon Society Idaho Power Intermountain Gas SuperValu/Albertsons Sustainable Housing Innovative Partnership Sustainable Idaho Terravita Landscape The Nature Conservancy United Water Water Furnace International, Inc.
Front Door
FOOT
HILL
S LE
ARNI
NG C
ENTE
R
How it all started...The Foothills Learning Center (FLC) building stands on the site of the McCord house, the last home in Hulls Gulch. Here the City of Boise could realize its vision of creating a facility to teach people about the foothills ecosystem.
That vision began in the early 1990s as an awareness of the value of open space, then expanded into the Save Hulls Gulch campaign; spawned the City’s Foothills Open Space
Management Plan in 2000; led to the passage of the Foothills Levy in 2001; and fueled the partnerships that created the Foothills Learning Center. With 80,000 acres of open space as its backdrop, this Center is a testament to the value that Boise’s citizens and government place on the quality of life that comes from being close to nature. From the beginning, the FLC was a collaborative effort with a commitment to green. The demolition of the McCord house provided inventory for the Second Chance Building Center, a retail outlet for salvaged building materials. Second Chance keeps materials out of the landfill, creates work for local people, and provides affordable construction materials for the community. Earth Day, April 22, 2005, marked the FLC’s grand opening. Today, the building serves as a model for what we can do to conserve energy and natural resources. Ta
ke it
Hom
e!Y
ou
have n
ow
seen
th
e m
an
y f
eatu
res
of
ou
r p
rop
ert
y,
the
bu
ild
ing
, th
e s
tuff
in
sid
e,
an
d h
ow
we “
live”
in t
he b
uil
din
g.
Th
ese
featu
res
help
pre
serv
e o
ur
natu
ral
reso
urc
es
an
d p
rote
ct
the e
nvir
on
men
t fo
r fu
ture
gen
era
tio
ns.
M
uch
of
wh
at
we d
o a
t th
e F
LC
yo
u c
an
als
o d
o a
t h
om
e.
We h
op
e t
hat
the C
en
ter
an
d
ou
r p
ract
ices
will
serv
e a
s a m
od
el
an
d a
n i
nsp
irati
on
to
fo
lks
tryin
g t
o l
ive a
lit
tle l
igh
ter
on
th
e l
an
d.
Link
s to
Lea
rnin
gTh
e w
eb
site
s b
elo
w c
an
be u
sefu
l an
d f
un
to
ols
fo
r an
yo
ne
loo
kin
g t
o i
mp
lem
en
t o
r le
arn
mo
re a
bo
ut
sust
ain
ab
le p
ract
ices
on
a l
oca
l o
r a n
ati
on
al
scale
:•ConsumerReportsGreenerChoices–greenerchoices.org
•EnergyEducation–energyquest.ca.gov
•EnergyStarPublications–energystar.gov
•EPAEnvironmentalKidsClub–epa.gov/kids
•FirewiseLandscaping–idahofirewise.org
•ForestStewardshipCouncil–fsc.org
•IdahoNativePlantSociety–idahonativeplants.org
•IdahoPower,EnergyEfficiency–idahopower.com
•Recycling-curbit.cityofboise.org
•SolarEnergyResourcesforStudents-solarenergy.org
•U.S.Dept.ofEnergy,EnergyEfficiency&RenewableEnergy-
eere
.en
erg
y.g
ov
•U.S.EnergyInformationAdmin.,EnergyKids-
eia
.do
e.g
ov/
kid
s•U.S.GreenBuildingCouncil,LEED–usgbc.org
Let’
s Lo
ok O
uts
ide
From
the
lobby,
exi
t th
rough t
he
doors
bet
wee
n t
he
clas
sroom
and t
he
confe
rence
room
.
Str
aight
ahea
d is
the
Nat
ive
Plan
t G
arden
. A
ll th
e pla
nts
are
dro
ught
tole
rant
and n
ativ
e to
so
uth
wes
t Id
aho.
N
ativ
e gra
sses
are
use
d inst
ead o
f tu
rf w
her
ever
poss
ible
. W
e co
nse
rve
wat
er b
y usi
ng a
ppro
priat
e irrigat
ion:
a drip s
yste
m a
round t
he
shru
bs
and p
lanting b
eds,
an
d a
sprinkl
er s
yste
m for
the
gra
ssy
area
s.
Thes
e sy
stem
s re
duce
ove
rall
wat
er u
se a
nd
wat
er loss
thro
ugh e
vapora
tion.
The
fence
d-i
n a
rea
nex
t to
the
Nat
ive
Gar
den
conta
ins
a w
ater
-wis
e ve
get
able
gar
den
. W
e in
vite
child
ren a
nd t
hei
r par
ents
to join
us
ever
y sp
ring a
nd s
um
mer
as
we
tend o
ur
gar
den
an
d lea
rn a
bout
sust
ainab
le g
arden
ing in t
he
Bois
e ar
ea.
W
hile
in t
he
Nat
ive
Gar
den
, tu
rn a
round a
nd look
up a
t th
e lo
wer
sec
tion o
f th
e FL
C r
oof.
You c
an s
ee t
he
photo
voltai
c so
lar
pan
els.
Thes
e ad
d a
ctiv
e so
lar
ener
gy
gen
erat
ion t
o o
ur
pas
sive
sola
r des
ign.
The
FLC e
xpec
ts t
o g
et 2
5%
of
its
ener
gy
from
the
sola
r pan
els.
Tr
ack
the
real
-tim
e outp
ut
of our
pan
els
on o
ur
web
site
at
ww
w.B
ois
eEnvi
ronm
enta
lEduca
tion.o
rg.
Fr
om
the
gar
den
, yo
u c
an a
lso g
et a
gre
at v
iew
of
the
over
han
gin
g r
oof
and c
lere
story
w
indow
s, e
ssen
tial
ele
men
ts o
f our
pas
sive
sola
r des
ign.
Demolition of the McCord house.
Sustainable DesignThe m
ain ro
om
s of th
e FLC
build
ing featu
re passive so
lar desig
n. W
indow
s face south
, takin
g ad
vantag
e of th
e natu
ral heat an
d lig
ht p
rovided
by th
e su
n. T
he overh
angin
g ro
of an
d
clerestory w
indow
s help
man
age
seasonal ch
anges. In
the su
mm
er, w
hen
the su
n is at a h
igher an
gle,
the overh
angin
g ro
of p
rovides
shad
e from
glare an
d h
eat. In th
e w
inter, w
hen
the su
n is lo
wer in
the
south
ern sky, th
e win
dow
s let in
more d
irect sun rays, w
hich
help
to
heat th
e build
ing. T
his tran
slates into
energ
y savings.
Build
ing m
aterials were ch
osen
with
a com
mitm
ent to
su
stainab
ility and in
clude lu
mber certifi
ed as su
stainab
le by
the Fo
rest Stew
ardsh
ip C
ouncil (FS
C), cellu
lose in
sulatio
n,
and a lo
w-m
ainten
ance stu
cco exterio
r. Cellu
lose in
sulatio
n
is mad
e from
renew
able p
lant m
aterials, so it is an
in
expen
sive and very g
reen w
ay to in
sulate a b
uild
ing an
d
will b
iodeg
rade after d
isposal.
Firewise/Waterwise In addition to our waterwise native landscaping, our storm water system also helps to conserve water. Several low-lying areas called swales collect runoff from the gravel parking lot and the building roof. All the patios and paths (except for the pink sidewalk) are made with decomposed granite, which allows water to soak through the paths and into the ground below. The fire-resistant landscaping helps reduce the risk of severe fires. A firewise landscape includes:• Leaving 30 feet between the building and trees and shrubs• Planting well-irrigated, low-density vegetation• Breaking up vegetation with driveways, sidewalks, paths, and patios• Using fire-retardant materials such as stones, stucco, and metal• Thinning nearby sagebrushThese are great guidelines to follow for anyone who lives in thewildland/urban interface.
The m
aster plan
for th
e FLC
landscap
e inclu
des o
utd
oor
sculp
ture in
the fo
ur card
inal
directio
ns. T
he E
ast node
sculp
ture, A
ero A
goseris,
represen
ts the A
ir elemen
t. It was created
by
Mark B
altes, a Boise artist an
d sig
n m
aker, to
resemble a n
ative mountain
dan
delio
n seed
head
in th
e act of d
ispersal. N
otice th
e seeds
wired
to th
e roof lo
okin
g like th
ey just b
lew in
!
The S
outh
node scu
lptu
re, Cat’s Face R
evival by B
oise artist R
eham
Aarti, w
ill be in
stalled
in 2
011 as p
art of th
e Native G
arden
and w
ill refl
ect the Fire elem
ent. A
s fundin
g b
ecom
es availab
le, nodes w
ill be created
to th
e North
an
d W
est as well, rep
resentin
g th
e Earth
and
Water elem
ents.
Public Art
SummerSun Rays
SummerSun Rays
Winter
Sun Rays
Winter
Sun Rays
WE WALKTHE TALK
As we work and learn in the FLC building, we try to reduce our impact on the environment. Bike racks out front encourage alternative transportation. We use reusable eating utensils to reduce landfill waste. When disposable materials are necessary, we recycle. We also compost. What is composting? It turns that leftover food from your plate and other plant material, like leaves, into rich organic soil. That soil is used in our garden as a perfect fertilizer. Composting is like recycling food and yard garbage, as it reduces landfill waste and helps our garden. You can check out the compost bins in the southeast corner of the garden. As you tour the building inside and outside, take time to appreciate these and other elements that help maximize efficiency and minimize our carbon footprint.