The Public Safety Academy at College of the Desert, designed by HMC Architects, has officially achieved LEED® Silver certification by the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). This achievement affirms College of the Desert’s commitment to environmental stewardship and becomes their second LEED-certified facility.

“It is great to work with a client like College of the Desert who is actively seeking sustainable design solutions for their projects,” stated Ken Salyer, principal at HMC Architects. “Many of the sustainable design strategies we used—improved indoor air quality, thermal comfort, and classroom day lighting—are practices we would typically do for any education project.”

Sustainable design strategies include the use of translucent skylights that provide day lighting to interior spaces, PVC cool roofing to reduce heat gain and heat island effect, optimized energy performance, and the use of recycled denim jeans as insulation. Overall, the facility performs more than 20% better than Title 24 energy code.

The facility is designed to train fire fighters and police officers for the entire eastern side or Riverside County and offers academic programs in Administration of Justice, Basic Peace Officer Training, Fire Technology, and Emergency Medical Technician.