Government building gets LEED Gold certification

Toho Water Authority recently announced its new headquarters on Martin Luther King Boulevard in Kissimmee was the first government building in Osceola County to have received the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification.

LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system that promotes a whole building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in five key areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality.

There are four levels of certification that can be awarded by means of a point system for different categories: Certified, Silver, Gold and the highest being Platinum.

The headquarters building was designed by KZF Design, with construction management by Balfour Beatty Construction and PMA as the owner’s representative.

The building houses all of the agency’s administration, engineering, accounting and customer service departments.

Check status of a driver license or identification card

Residents who have ordered a driver license or identification card online or by mail from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles no longer need to call the Customer Service Center to inquire about the status of their order.

Floridians now can look up when the department printed and mailed their license or identification card by visiting www.flhsmv.gov and selecting “Driver License and ID Card Tracking System.” Customers will need their license or identification number to look up their order.

“This has been years in the making, and it is another example of ways we are improving customer service efforts in Florida,” said Division of Motorist Services Director, Sandra Lambert. “We know our customers’ time is valuable. We want to help them save time and make doing business with the department easy.”

Lynx service during hurricanes

Now that the annual hurricane season has arrived, Lynx, the regional transportation agency, is reminding the community that all the transportation services it provides would be maintained as scheduled until sustained winds reach 35 mph on the ground or there is flooding.

If the high wind level is reached or there is flooding, Lynx fixed route, LYMMO, PickUpLine and Road Rangers service would be discontinued for safety reasons until conditions improve.

For the 12 hours before sustained winds are expected to reach 35 mph, Access Lynx would only be providing life-sustaining medical trips.

Lynx staff will monitor the effects of the storm and will keep the community up-to-date as the storm passes through the area via www.golynx.com, LYNX Customer Service 407-841-LYNX (5969) and local media outlets.