March 21, 2019

We are delighted to share that the Illinois Tollways M-6 Vehicle Maintenance Facility near Hampshire, Illinois was certified by the United States Green Building Council as LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Gold! M-6, located on US 20 near Mile Marker 42, is the third site to be addressed in the system-wide Maintenance Facility program being planned, designed and engineered by Epstein for the Illinois Tollway.

Epstein provided lead architectural design as well as MEP and structural engineering services for the $23 million M-6 facility, which is comprised of an approximately 400 by 165 maintenance building that houses: 32,000 square feet of truck and equipment parking and a welding shop; 6,500 square feet of parts, storage, management offices; a storage mezzanine; and an 8,400 square foot bay truck maintenance workshop. Additionally, an administrative support area of 6,000 square feet houses an independent State Highway Patrol facility and Tollway driver support, including locker rooms and a break assembly area for daily and emergency storm logistic briefings. Site design reconstruction also includes fuel island upgrades and an equipment building to support a communication tower.

In addition, to help reduce the highly aggressive corrosive impact of 24/7 snow removal and rescue activities, M-6 will have an independent-free-standing truck-wash facility on site constructed with similar pre-cast materials as the maintenance facility.

The building also features many sustainable design elements, including a rooftop photovoltaic array that supplies supplemental electricity. Skylights and punched openings in the pre-cast wall panels utilize translucent, insulating glass and polycarbonate panels to provide abundant natural day-lighting. The high-bay maintenance portion is naturally ventilated with operable windows. These sustainable design solutions helped the M-6 Facility achieve LEED-Gold certification.

The M-6 facility also features a 200 kilowatt (kW) solar array on the roof, which will produce an estimated 268,211 kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity each year, nearly $21,190 worth of electricity. And, most importantly, this solar array will significantly reduce emissions to the equivalent of using 315 barrels of crude oil.

The first facility, the LEED Gold M-1 in Alsip, Illinois, was completed in 2015 and the second, the LEED Gold M-7 in Rockford, Illinois, was completed in 2018.