OXNARD : Energy-Efficient School Wins Award

The Oxnard Elementary School District has received a $2,500 award for the energy-efficient design of Emilie Ritchen Elementary School.

Although the school is still under construction, the district received top honors from Southern California Edison and the California Energy Commission, sponsors of an annual Design for Excellence competition for commercial and institutional projects.

Ritchen will open in July, 1992.

“We are enormously pleased,” Supt. Norman R. Brekke said. “Energy-efficient designs, especially in school buildings, are a high priority. There are tens of thousands of dollars of cost savings each year, and the taxpayers reap the benefits of a creative design.”

Each classroom and office in Ritchen will take advantage of natural light, Brekke said.

The school will have sensors that automatically turn lights on when someone is in a room and off when it is unoccupied. The sensors also add more light if there is not enough sunlight and less if the day is bright, Brekke said.

The air-conditioning system is part of a thermal energy storage system in which ice is generated during the night and is used during the day to generate cold air, he said.

The school was designed by BFGC Architects Planners Inc. of Bakersfield.

Engineers Charles Mistretta & Associates and Kurily Szymanski Tchirkow and consultants Santa Barbara Electrical Design Group and Tech 5 Corp. were also recognized during the ceremony in Newport Beach.