M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center
 

Each day we watched in excitement as the Horticulture Education Center came together. The above video in time lapse shows some of the final days of construction. We are thrilled! 

Inspired by the Kappen Aquatic Center, along with our other previous environmental efforts, OSB's newly-constructed M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center is LEED Silver Certified under the new Version 4 LEED Building Design and Construction rating system (contingent upon certification) and is also pursuing NetZero Energy Building status thanks to a generous grant from our partners at the Green Mountain Energy Sun Club.

The 1,780 square-foot, state-of-the-art facility features a fully accessible greenhouse with an attached headhouse containing a functional and accessible classroom space. Though greenhouses are by nature not energy efficient, we were ready to take on the challenge. Specifically, the design and construction of the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center accomplished the following sustainability-focused outcomes:

• By constructing the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center on the site of our former pool building, Overbrook School for the Blind helped to reduce the environmental impacts commonly associated with building on a new, undisturbed site; 
   
• The roof of the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center's classroom space is lightly-colored, which helps reduce the heat island effect on site. By using a lightly-colored roof, we help lessen the impacts to plants and animals affected by temperature changes and promote better human health and comfort;
   
• Through the use of low-flow plumbing fixtures, as well as a rainwater harvesting system, the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center is projected to use 82% less water than a greenhouse of a similar size lacking these features. For comparison, that's nearly 9,000 gallons of water saved every year;
   
• The M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center is also tracking to achieve NetZero Energy Building status thanks to solar panels installed on the Nevil Field House located just across campus. Made possible by Green Mountain Energy, OSB installed a 50 kW Photovoltaic (PV) system on the roof of OSB's Nevil Fieldhouse to offset the energy used by the Horticulture Education Center. The PV system will generate more than 85,000 kilowatt hours (kWh) in the first year of production, with the hopes that after a year the Horticulture Education Center will be NetZero certified, meaning that the panels will produce as much or more energy than it takes to run the Center; and,
   
• At Overbrook School for the Blind, we believe that indoor air quality important to everyone, big and small. We carried this forward with the designs for the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center by committing to low-Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) materials, which can cause short and long-term health effects like asthma and eye, nose and throat irritation. To reduce exposure to these contaminants, the materials central to the construction of the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center—paint, grout and flooring—all meet strict requirements for VOC emissions and content.

Many thanks and much gratitude.
 

Through the continued support, generosity and kindness of Sid Rosenblatt, the M. Christine Murphy Horticulture Education Center, has become a reality. The center is named in his wife's honor, who played a tremendous role as a member of the Board, loved our students beyond measure,  and adored flowers and gardens.