Misc. Links- Ground Zero to Michigan

Some green building news to catch up on after a few days of mini-vacation for me. 7 World Trade Center opens for business. The U.S. Green Building Council, which has developed the nation's only common standard of measurement for a "green" building, recently certified 7 World Trade Center at Gold status under its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system. As the first "green" office building in New York City, 7 World Trade Center has been recognized for its pioneering approach to providing occupants with cleaner air and more natural light, while conserving energy and other natural resources. Green efforts include: Rainwater collection for irrigating the park and cooling the building; use of recycled material in the construction effort and separation of refuse and recyclable materials on site; and use of latest glass technology, providing maximum building energy conservation and more natural light for tenants. An interesting article discussing green furniture. Norfolk, VA hopes to go platinum. The article describes the public's general opinion of green building by stating that "[t]hings like green buildings and conservation tend to evoke a kind of fear in the public that their lifestyle will be retooled to resemble Pennsylvania Dutch Country." I'm not sure how accurate of an assessment that is, particularly when the proposed building (an environmental action center) will "send energy back to the power plant since it will generate more energy than it can use." Developers in Michigan implementing green building practices. I think it's highly instructive to listen to what developers themselves are saying about LEED and green building. This article quotes various industry professionals, including one developer converting a downtown Lansing factory into condominiums. Developer Harry Hepler estimates it's costing him $1 million more for his $12.8 million Motor Wheel Loft project to meet LEED standards. But the cost is worth it, he said. "It's self-gratifying," said Hepler, who specializes in the redevelopment of historic buildings. "That's what it really comes down to. This is an urban development. The whole purpose of people moving to the inner city is a lot of them don't believe in urban sprawl." Hepler said 30 of the 120 apartments under construction in the building have been leased because tenants wanted to live in an environmentally friendly building. Hepler's crew has had to take special steps to meet the stringent requirements, from recycling concrete waste to choosing materials and products manufactured within a 500-mile radius. The apartment building also will have a Chevrolet Suburban that uses E85 fuel - made of 85 percent ethanol - to operate as a shuttle service for tenants. All the extra work results in utility savings for tenants, he said, which makes the apartments more marketable. "There's nothing like moving into a place and having high energy consumption - especially an old place," he said. "That's a turnoff." The bottom line seems to be that if green buildings lead to increased occupancy rates, developers will build them. The 30 out of 120 apartments leased to tenants interested in living in a green building seems like a pretty high number, but I haven't seen any similar statistics published anywhere else. There definitely seems to be a market out there for apartments in green buildings, though, and people seem willing to pay a premium for green addresses.