News and Media

New guidance launched to support green certification of mixed-use buildings

Written by NZGBC | 29 September 2022

With greater density and urban intensification New Zealand has seen a surge in mixed-use buildings. Ground floor shops under apartments, apartments and offices in the same tower block – we’re increasingly seeing both commercial and residential buildings being built together. However, for those looking to build more sustainably and benchmark their projects, it has been difficult to navigate what certification is appropriate, and how those certifications interact. Green Star has been developed to work exclusively with commercial buildings, and Homestar with residential. This has meant, for example, mixed- use buildings that incorporate spaces for people to live have missed the opportunity to receive a whole building rating.

Following industry feedback we are pleased to introduce our first mixed-use technical guidance to help projects achieve certification for mixed-use buildings.

The document helps walk you through how projects can align with both Green Star Design & As Built NZv1.0 and Homestar v5. It also outlines how the various requirements for each of the certifications can be applied and where.

Importantly, it helps project teams establish which Green Star rating aligns with which Homestar rating in order to maintain the integrity of the certification. For example, a project looking to achieve a 5 Green Star certification must achieve a 7 or 8 Homestar certification for all residential areas of the building.

You can read the full document here

 

Thank you to our members and stakeholders who provided feedback and input into developing this document.

With the upcoming transition to the latest version Green Star Design & As Built NZv1.1, this guidance will continue to be reviewed and updated. We welcome more feedback on this and how Green Star can help the industry on its sustainability journey.

Should you have any questions or need clarification on how to apply the mixed-use guidance to your projects please contact the Green Star team directly - greenstarnz@nzgbc.org.nz