The Norma Hertzog Community Center (NHCC), a new facility that has had a transformative impact on the Costa Mesa, CA, area since its opening, has been honored by the American Society of Civil Engineers, Orange County Branch (ASCE OC) as a 2021 Outstanding Architectural Engineering Project.
On behalf of the City of Cosa Mesa, STV performed construction management services for this program which consisted of a new library and community center. In the project’s first phase, which was also honored by ASCE OC as an Outstanding Architectural Engineering Project in 2020, the existing community center was demolished to make way for a new, two-story library. The second phase of the project entailed renovating the existing Donald Dungan Library and repurposing the space for the new NHCC. It is uncommon for two separate projects within one construction program to receive these prestigious ASCE OC awards individually.
From the program’s onset, energy conservation and the incorporation of sustainable design and construction practices were major priorities for the client. As part of its construction management services, STV conducted an alternative investigation that found that construction materials reclaimed from the community center’s demolition could be repurposed as the crushed material base for the new library’s foundation. This unique method minimized waste and reduced the amount of construction debris that needed to be hauled off site.
The project achieved LEED (Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design) Gold Certification and was recognized by the U.S. Green Building Council at its 20th Annual Municipal Green Building Conference and Expo. It was the only project in California to be certified LEED Gold in 2020, and one of only four Gold projects within the United States in the Municipal Project Award for Cities and Communities category.
