The Summit Foundation Project Goals
The one of the core charitable focus areas of The Summit Foundation is Sustainable Cities, and the members of the organization are deeply passionate about clean, carbon neutral energy and sustainable materials sourcing. The project team hoped that by pursuing the Living Building Challenge Materials Petal and LEED Platinum, the project could have a social, economic, health and carbon reduction impact that could ultimately benefit its employees, the regional community, and the global ecology.
The space is a mixture of private and open office workspace with the private offices having glass walls to enable light transmission as deep into the interior as possible. The office includes a reception area, a small break room/kitchen, two conference rooms, and a mail room with a printer (low-volume printing only to avoid indoor air pollution). Plumbing fixtures are limited to the kitchen and water will be greatly reduced by efficient equipment and fixtures.
The Project Team
This ground breaking project was made possible through the vision and unwavering dedication of Roger and Vicki Sant. The team below designed, constructed, and managed the project and fought hard to make the impossible possible.
Lex Sant | Client: Summit Foundation
Lex is the Treasurer of the Summit Foundation and a second-generation leader of the family’s charitable activities. In his role leading the client side of the project, he was able to set the scope of the project and to build and coordinate the broad set of people and firms that made it possible to deliver a LEED Platinum and Living Building Challenge compliant space.
Krista Raines | Sustainability: stok
Krista helped the client and design team set aggressive goals for the project and provided the technical expertise in energy, carbon and sustainable materials required to execute these goals. She helped the ideas become reality by getting everyone involved in the project on-board by communicating expectations. She acted quickly to provide solutions to problems that arose in procuring materials so that the construction could continue to move forward.
Hakee Chang | Design Team: Perkins+Will
An experienced Interior Designer that likes leading edge design, Hakee embraced the aggressive sustainability goals for the project and blended them with his aesthetic vision. He kept the project on track by insisting that sustainability be coupled with beauty, comfort, and functionality. He believes that high quality design can transform the work experience for project occupants.
Dave Bloom | Design Team: Perkins+Will
Dave is a knowledgable architect with an obsessive eye for detail, not only understanding the components of the design and how they came together and could be built, but also what each component was made up of and where it came from. His ability to communicate, bring the team together, and stay cool under pressure allowed the design to be executed with full materials transparency and beautiful results.
Michael Tam | Design Team: Perkins+Will
Michael is a skilled Interior Designer and researcher. He was able to find materials that met the refined palette of colors and textures and identify their complex chemical make up. His unwavering charisma and persistence enabled the design to meet the material sustainability goals of the project while maintaining an elegant design aesthetic.
Lisa Weeks | Design Team: Perkins+will
Lisa is the fearless Leader of the Interior Design Studio at Perkins+Will's San Francisco office. When the team hit roadblocks with acquiring products, it was Lisa's determination that kept the team pushing along. Her extensive network of connections and industry reputation enabled the team to work closely with manufacturers to get the job done.
Beth Giltner | Construction Team: RAND*
Beth is more committed to building sustainably than any contractor you will ever meet. Her willingness to try anything from alternative construction methods to running around town looking for the healthiest materials was critical to the success of this project. Beth spent more time on the phone than any team member, verifying that the material ingredients were Red List compliant and locally sourced before allowing products to be purchased and installed.
Merrell B. Ashley | Construction Team: Rand*
As a leader of the rand* team, it was Merrell's persistence and belief in doing the right thing that empowered the construction team to abandon the status quo and forge into new territory in sustainable construction. There were many times that Merrell and his team could have told the client that avoiding harmful chemicals in all building products was not possible, instead, he made sure it was done.
Project Gallery
