Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center in Pompano Beach earned LEED v4.1
The Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center in Pompano Beach, Florida, successfully earned LEED v4.1 Gold certification for Existing Buildings, advancing the city’s sustainability goals with SOCOTEC’s expert guidance.
Key Information
Client: City of Pompano Beach, Florida
Location: 2669 N Federal Hwy, Pompano Beach, FL 33064
Services Provided: Energy & Sustainability, Green Building Certification Consulting, Energy Audit, Waste Management, Owner's Project Management.
Expert contact(s): Amy Ford, Senior Project Manager - Energy and Sustainability and Steve Samenski, Director of Building Performance - Energy and Sustainability
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The Challenge
How Can Buildings Meet a City’s High Sustainability Goals?
The Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center, named in honor of Pompano Beach’s former commissioner and vice mayor Charlotte J. Burrie, serves as a community hub designed for cultural, civic, and recreational activities. Opened in 2020, the 8,712 SF facility was built with a strong focus on accessibility and functionality, featuring an auditorium, multi-purpose rooms, administrative offices, and gathering spaces for up to 250 people.
While the building was new, the City of Pompano Beach set ambitious sustainability and benchmarking goals. For the Civic Center, the challenge was clear: achieve LEED certification while demonstrating energy efficiency, environmental responsibility, and measurable improvements in daily operations, without compromising community services.
To succeed, the project required more than standard compliance. It called for a comprehensive strategy to address deficiencies in building systems, optimize long-term performance, and align operations with both city-wide sustainability objectives and LEED requirements.
The Solution
What Does it Take to Ensure LEED Certification Success?
SOCOTEC partnered with the City of Pompano Beach to deliver targeted LEED consulting and sustainability expertise, ensuring the Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center met stringent U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) standards.
Our team in West Palm Beach collaborated closely with city staff, architects, and facility managers to integrate LEED plans and policies into both building-specific operations and the city’s broader sustainability initiatives.
Key services provided included:
- LEED Consulting: Collaborating on city-wide and building-specific LEED plans and policies, guiding the project team across multiple departments to achieve LEED v4.1 O+M certification.
- Sustainability & Benchmarking: Aligning certification efforts with the City of Pompano Beach’s broader sustainability goals, benchmarking performance, and ensuring long-term alignment with municipal priorities.
- Energy Performance & O&M Planning : Conducting testing and balancing (T&B) and an ASHRAE Level 1 Energy Audit to identify system inefficiencies, rectify deficiencies, and optimize building operations for improved performance. In addition, assisting with the development of Current Facility Requirements and O+M Plans to ensure that facility managers and building operators have the documentation and guidance needed to sustain high performance over time.
- Waste Performance: Conducting a comprehensive waste audit to assess current recycling practices, analyze market trends, and implement proven clear-labeling strategies. These efforts improved diversion rates, and the City developed custom signage to support ongoing compliance and staff education.
- Audit & Compliance: Addressing issues identified during the certification and review process.
SOCOTEC’s proven track record as a USGBC Proven Provider enabled an efficient certification process, with direct access to expedited reviews and dedicated program manager support.
SOCOTEC partnered with the City of Pompano Beach to deliver targeted LEED consulting and sustainability expertise, ensuring the Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center met stringent U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) standards.
Our team in West Palm Beach collaborated closely with city staff, architects, and facility managers to integrate LEED plans and policies into both building-specific operations and the city’s broader sustainability initiatives.
Key services provided included:
- LEED Consulting: Collaborating on city-wide and building-specific LEED plans and policies, guiding the project team across multiple departments to achieve LEED v4.1 O+M certification.
- Sustainability & Benchmarking: Aligning certification efforts with the City of Pompano Beach’s broader sustainability goals, benchmarking performance, and ensuring long-term alignment with municipal priorities.
- Energy Performance & O&M Planning : Conducting testing and balancing (T&B) and an ASHRAE Level 1 Energy Audit to identify system inefficiencies, rectify deficiencies, and optimize building operations for improved performance. In addition, assisting with the development of Current Facility Requirements and O+M Plans to ensure that facility managers and building operators have the documentation and guidance needed to sustain high performance over time.
- Waste Performance: Conducting a comprehensive waste audit to assess current recycling practices, analyze market trends, and implement proven clear-labeling strategies. These efforts improved diversion rates, and the City developed custom signage to support ongoing compliance and staff education.
- Audit & Compliance: Addressing issues identified during the certification and review process.
SOCOTEC’s proven track record as a USGBC Proven Provider enabled an efficient certification process, with direct access to expedited reviews and dedicated program manager support.
A lot of LEED projects are for new construction or big renovations, so it’s exciting to see a city take the extra step to certify an existing building under LEED v4.1 O+M. What I enjoy most about LEED for Existing Buildings projects is the collaboration it takes. I worked with the CIP Manager, Recreation Supervisor, Facility Manager, the City’s Director of Sustainability, the Purchasing Department, and the Recycling Coordinator — just to name a few. That collaboration allowed us to take what the teams were already doing, strengthen it, and align it with LEED strategies to ensure performance remains strong across all operations.
The Results
What are the Outcomes of a LEED Gold Certification?
In June 2025, the Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center officially earned LEED Gold certification under the v4.1 Operations + Maintenance (O+M) rating system for Existing Buildings.
This achievement highlights the City of Pompano Beach’s commitment to a greener future while providing a high-performance, accessible, and sustainable space for the community.
The results included:
- LEED Gold Certification: recognition of sustainable operations and energy-efficient practices.
- Optimized Building Performance: reduced environmental impact and improved operational efficiency.
- Community Benefits: a cultural and civic facility aligned with both accessibility and sustainability goals.
Amy and her entire SOCOTEC team did an outstanding job leading the effort to achieve LEED Gold Certification. Their dedication, expertise, and collaborative approach brought together multiple departments and strengthened existing practices to meet the rigorous LEED v4.1 O+M standards. This achievement is a true reflection of their commitment to sustainability and operational excellence.
Green Building Certification Consulting in Florida
The Charlotte J. Burrie Civic Center project demonstrates how collaboration, expertise, and commitment to the environment can transform an existing building into a model of green building certification success.
At SOCOTEC, we bring trusted expertise in energy, sustainability, and LEED consulting in Florida and beyond, to help clients achieve their performance and certification goals. From cultural centers to large-scale campuses, we provide the technical insight and strategic guidance needed to navigate the complexities of green building certifications with confidence. In addition, we offer a wide range of services that support the full lifecycle of built assets, ensuring long-term value, resilience, and performance.
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Our Energy & Sustainability team can help your project achieve its LEED certification and long-term performance goals.
