Palm Desert's Sheriff Station Gets Energy Award

The has been awarded a Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) gold certification, according to Riverside County Supervisor John Benoit. 

The station is the first county constructed building to receive a gold certification.

"This prestigious rating distinguishes the station as a premier prototype of green design in our state,” Benoit said in a press release.

LEED is a international green building certification system that gives certifications based on a buildings energy efficiency and design. The recently completed sheriff’s station received 44 of a possible 69 points.

The Palm Desert station is believed to be the first sheriff's station in California to receive any level of LEED certification, Benoit's aide Darin Schemmer said. A certified plaque from the U.S. Green Building Council will be placed in the lobby of the station, he said.

The station, which was dedicated in October 2010, has over 300 roof-mounted solar panels that reduce electricity use by 20 percent, according to Schemmer. 

The station also received high praise for its other use of green design elements.