Sunday, 01 June 2003
Wolf Trap: In Harmony with FSC
Partner Profile
The Center for Education at Wolf Trap, designed by the architectural firm Robert Wilson Mobley Partnership of Great Falls, VA, is a brand-new, non-profit, national, arts-in-education resource center for children, parents, educators and performing artists. The Center, dedicated on May 19, 2003, is the new home to Wolf Trap’s acclaimed education programs, the Wolf Trap Opera Company and Wolf Trap Foundation administrative staff.
The Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts is a non-profit organization that presents music and education programs in the greater Washington, D.C. area. It was originally founded through a private donation of 100 acres of a Vienna, Virginia farmland to the U.S. Government, as well as funds for a foundation to begin construction of a theater. Wolf Trap’s performance venues opened as a public/private partnership between the Wolf Trap Foundation and the National Park Service. The National Park Service owns the land and the facilities, and the Foundation coordinates and present the programs.
Creating a “green" building was very important for this organization given their unique mission. For example, the facility makes extensive use of energy efficient lighting. The 54,000+ square foot building called for more than 7 miles of oak trim, and the builders for the project, Westport Corporation of Ashburn, VA, recognized the opportunity to make the building even “greener" by utilizing FSC-certified products, which they had worked with in the past.
Because the project architects had given Westport enough lead-time, all 7-miles of the oak trim were able to be supplied as FSC-certified by Northland Forest Products of Manassas, VA.
Stephan Mullaney, president of Westport, noted that, “We have a responsibility to future generations to pass along to them the opportunity to enjoy the same resources which benefit us. Businesses need to recognize that responsibility and to adjust their business plans accordingly. The FSC affords us an opportunity to do just that. Wolf Trap is a great example of a project where we had the choice to participate in prudent management practices. In this case, the cost of utilizing FSC materials resulted in a flat cost to the Owner. However, if in fact, the cost was greater, we have to consider the benefit of investing in the future. We put money in all types of investment accounts for our retirement, our children and our grandchildren. Why wouldn’t we invest in knowing that we are not passing along the burden of more limited resources and a less healthy environment?"
For more information, visit www.wolftrap.org.