Virginia localities are taking strides to adopt or update their high-performance building design and construction standards, while referencing LEED in their policies as a measuring stick for green building achievement. Below are a few examples of Virginia cities and counties progressing toward a healthier, more sustainable built environment through policy.

Fairfax

The City of Fairfax is developing a green building policy for public and private new construction and major renovations. The draft policy would require eligible public buildings to achieve LEED Gold certification and comply with the federal zero-emissions building definition, as well as require eligible private buildings to achieve LEED Silver certification or equivalent. Tax incentives are available for private building projects pursuing certification at a higher level.

USGBC has supported the development of this policy by serving on the green building policy advisory committee, sharing public comment opportunities with our local community and attending stakeholder meetings. The policy is expected to go to the city council in early 2025.

Richmond

On Nov. 12, Richmond City Council adopted Ordinance 2024-271, establishing Sustainable Design Standards (SDS) for city projects and projects built on city property. The SDS relies on third party certification to verify achievement—LEED for vertical buildings and Envision for horizontal infrastructure.

The standards require all city-owned new construction over 10,000 square feet and major renovation projects to achieve LEED Silver certification under the most current version of LEED. In tandem, projects are directed to achieve specific LEED credits such as Electric Vehicles, Site Assessment, Renewable Energy, Enhanced Commissioning and four Water Efficiency credits, layering in the city’s goals onto the flexible LEED rating system.

Richmond is leading by example through this policy, which will help deliver on the goals in the city’s RVAgreen 2050 climate action plan.

Arlington County

Arlington County is in the process of updating its longstanding Green Building Incentive Policy (GBIP), which is on track to be finalized in 2025. The draft policy adds flexibility to the program through tiered incentives and emphasizes decarbonization of existing buildings through several new pathways.

Under the Traditional Pathway, new construction projects would be eligible for a density bonus if they achieve LEED v4 BD+C at the Platinum level or LEED v5 at the Gold level, increasing stringency from the current baseline of LEED v4 or v4.1 at the Gold level. New construction projects pursuing the Climate Adaptation Pathway would be eligible for a density bonus and grant funding if they achieve Phius Zero and comply with the county's green infrastructure requirements.

There are also two new pathways for existing buildings and adaptive reuse projects. Existing buildings that achieve Energy Star certification or a 10% reduction in energy use intensity (EUI) would be eligible to receive $0.50–$0.75 per square foot for up to five years, rewarding actual energy efficiency performance. Adaptive reuse projects, specifically commercial-to-residential conversions, that achieve LEED BD+C v4 at the Gold level or LEED v5 at the Silver level and a 25% reduction in modeled EUI would be eligible for $1,500–$2,500 per unit upon project certification.

The county is currently in the public engagement phase of updating the GBIP—learn more on their website.

Want to find out if your city has a green building policy? Explore USGBC’s public policy library.

Learn more about green building in Virginia

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Virginia localities advance green building policies