Kiowa County Commons

On May 4, 2007, Greensburg, Kansas, was hit by an EF5 tornado that destroyed everything in a 1.7-mile path. One of the many buildings destroyed was the Kiowa County Library and Historical Museum, which was to be reconstructed as the Kiowa County Commons.

The challenge

The town passed a resolution stating that all future municipal buildings of more than 4,000 square feet would be built to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s prestigious LEED^® Platinum designation.

The solution

Roofing components included a vegetative roof system using native vegetation and roof-mounted photovoltaic cells to serve as a renewable energy component by providing electrical power from solar generation. EverGuard Extreme^® TPO was selected to be used beneath the Building Integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV) system at Kiowa County Commons; BIPV can create temperatures as high as 190°F on adjacent roofing surfaces. EverGuard Extreme^® uses proprietary stabilizers and UV absorbers to achieve weathering performance far beyond ASTM standards. EverGuard Extreme^® TPO can be used to comply with Title 24 roofing product requirements and contributes to LEED V4 credit. The reflectivity on EverGuard Extreme^® TPO is even higher than the standard GAF white TPO sheet, improving what has already proven to be a "cool- roofing" product.