Desert Vernacular: Green Building and Ecological Design in Scottsdale, Arizona - Design with the Desert: Conservation and Sustainable Development - page 500

opportunities. 23 Do we choose to ignore or celebrate environmental challenges? I would
say Scottsdale has chosen to continue the effort to integrate the innate characteristics of the
desert environment. By being responsive to place, we are responsive to the environment.
By being responsive to the environment, we become responsive to our use of energy and
natural resources.
As a statement of goals and policies, a general plan is only as good as the choices made
and actions taken on a daily basis regarding development proposals in the context of land
use, natural open space, infrastructure, density, heat island effect, transportation, com-
munity services, pedestrian access, and connectivity. A community must be actively engaged
with long term community vision if the intention is to build a sustainable environment , viable
economy, and balanced community (see Chapters 18, 25, 27, and 31). This is the challenge
of all city planning agencies and regulatory authorities.
Maintaining the integrity of Scottsdale's unique environment is an ongoing priority
for the community. The city's efforts on desert preservation and biodiversity have been
internationally recognized. Scottsdale's planning and development policies, ordinances
and guidelines have evolved over the past 50 years with an early recognition of the unique
characteristics of the Sonoran Desert including its climate, landforms, native plants and
animals, and historical/cultural attributes. Implementing desert preservation, environ-
mentally sensitive development and green building, Scottsdale has learned to work with
the Sonoran Desert environment. Scottsdale's greatest challenge with development is low
density urban sprawl and the dominance of the automobile. We are embracing new tools
such as the LEED for Neighborhood Development (ND) green rating program and the
city's adoption of the International Green Construction Code (IgCC). The LEED ND pro-
gram can help guide city policy toward smart project location and linkages, neighborhood
patterns, green infrastructure, heat island mitigation, and transportation impact alterna-
tives. Scottsdale adopted the IgCC in July 2011 as a voluntary to replace the city's existing
commercial green building rating program. Although the IgCC is designed as a manda-
tory code, Scottsdale will use the code as an integrated part of the plan review and inspec-
tion process culminating in the issuance of a “green certificate of occupancy.” Scottsdale
will consider subsequent IgCC editions for possible adoption as a mandatory code. This
will be based on a number of factors including the number of successfully completed IgCC
projects, the state of the local economy and the will of city council.
By minimizing the impact of development and utilizing the natural resources of site and
region, Scottsdale will strive to embody the desert's bountiful riches as a part of a vernacular
Sonoran Desert architecture. This outlook will create a fundamental shift in the way
buildings look and perform in the desert as opposed to buildings that are out of place and
time. By generating greater awareness in the development community and implementing
the broader community vision, the desert communities of the southwest can become more
environmentally responsive and move toward a true vernacular expression of place.
References
1. Lechner, N., Heating, Cooling, Lighting: Design Methods for Architects (New York: John Wiley & Sons,
2009).
2. City of Scottsdale, Scottsdale green building program brochure (Scottsdale, AZ: City
of Scottsdale, April 2004).