Lake County unveils bird-friendly building design at Central Permit Facility

LIBERTYVILLE – Lake County officials gathered Nov. 8 to celebrate the bird-friendly enhancements at the Lake County Central Permit Facility in Libertyville in an effort to mitigate bird strikes against glass windows.

After a study was conducted at the facility, the building was retrofitted with improvements in high-strike zones. Proven bird-friendly modifications were added to the building, including a dot pattern applied to the windows on the front of the facility and paracord hung four inches apart on the south side of the building, according to a news release.

The Central Permit Facility is the first Lake County government building outfitted with a bird-friendly building design. Earlier this year, the Lake County Board approved amendments to the building code to mitigate bird collisions with glass on new and renovated nonresidential buildings in unincorporated Lake County as well as a policy for newly constructed Lake County government facilities.

“Incorporating bird-friendly building design may prevent the death of thousands of birds every year,” Lake County Board Chair Sandy Hart said in the release. “I’m proud that Lake County is making these simple, cost-effective improvements and continues to be a leader in protecting wildlife.”

Lake County lies within the path of the busy Mississippi Flyway, one of North America’s major bird migratory routes with millions of birds flying through the area each year. Bird collisions into glass have become a common occurrence in the region and nationwide. It is estimated more than 1 billion birds are killed annually in the U.S. because of building strikes. Birds do not see glass the way humans do, making it an invisible threat, and the reflection of trees in glass further confuses birds leading to additional collisions, according to the release.

“Lake County is committed to reducing man-made threats to our bird populations,” said Paul Frank, Lake County Financial and Administrative Committee Chair and board member for District 11. “Earlier this year we adopted one of the region’s first bird-friendly building design ordinances. This is an exciting step today as we lead by example adding low-cost decals to our own buildings in Lake County.”

Lake County staff monitored and surveyed the area around the Central Permit Facility to collect data connected to the amount of bird strikes that occur around the building. When the building was determined to be a good candidate for measures to make it more bird-friendly, staff researched the best solutions to retrofit the building to limit bird strikes. A dot pattern was chosen because it breaks up glass reflection, therefore increasing glass visibility for birds. Hanging paracord was chosen because it helps the building adhere to the 2 x 4 rule. Research has shown birds will not fly through spaces less than 2 inches high or 4 inches wide.

While the Central Permit Facility is the first bird-friendly Lake County government building, it won’t be the last. The Regional Operations and Communications Facility under construction in Libertyville is being built as a bird-friendly facility. The administrative building in Waukegan had a recent entrance renovation and is planned to be retrofitted with bird-friendly solution improvements.

The Lake County Board continues to emphasize protecting and enhancing the natural environment through its strategic plan. Learn more about the county’s sustainability efforts at lakecountyil.gov/sustainability.