Sustainable Development Focus
Next City - Jul 22 San Diego’s Climate Action Plan (CAP), which debuted in December, is the first municipal climate plan in the U.S. to make its goals legally binding. Further, an entire component of the plan is devoted to social equity, with a big focus on infrastructure investment and job creation. Low-income communities in San Diego will not only be the first to see drops in pollution from greenhouse gas emission reductions, but they will also benefit from community reinvestment initiatives in infrastructure and job access to cleantech jobs, one of the city’s booming industries. In other words, with each CAP-backed project — solar installations, energy-efficient construction, bike lanes — will come work opportunities for the very neighborhoods these projects will benefit the most.
North Bay Business Journal - Jul 21 Sonoma Academy, an independent college preparatory high school in Sonoma County, plans to break ground soon on the first phase of a dramatic transformation of the 34-acre campus and significantly expand its facilities. The $26 million, 22,000-square-foot project, known as the Grange and Studios, will add space for dining, commercial and teaching kitchens, and maker’s studio classrooms among other facilities. The building is designed to exceed LEED Platinum certification and meet net-zero-energy efficiency standards. It will have a vegetation-covered “living roof,” graywater recycling, and other key sustainability features.
Commercial Property Executive - Jul 20 A new study from Bentall Kennedy and the University of Guelph reveals why developing sustainable properties is a good investment. The study, based on data collected between 2004 and 2013, examined almost 300 office buildings, or 56 million square feet of commercial space, divided almost equally between the U.S. and Canada. Compared to traditional buildings, rents for sustainable properties, also known as green buildings, were on average 3.7 percent higher, the study found. Rents can be even higher for LEED-certified properties. Additionally, occupancy levels for green buildings were 4 percent higher, while tenant renewal probabilities for these buildings were roughly 6 percent higher.
Urban Land - Jul 15 New research shows that not only are walkable urban places (WalkUPs) in metropolitan areas ranging from New York City to Knoxville, Tennessee, on the rise nationally, but also the growing demand to locate in those areas is translating into significantly higher real estate rents. According to Foot Traffic Ahead 2016, WalkUPs in all 30 of the largest U.S. metro areas studied are attracting the majority of new real estate development, with the office, retail, and apartment properties located in those areas commanding rents that are, on average, 74 percent higher compared with their peers in drivable suburban locations. Researchers found a total of 619 WalkUPs across the 30 metro areas, which is up compared to the 558 studied in the 2014 report.
Comstock’s - Jul 22 In a state with more than 10,000 schools, spread throughout some of the most diverse climates anywhere in the country, is it even possible for cash-strapped school districts to find ways to improve the quality of California’s education through green design? That was the high-minded question that seven California architecture firms tackled as part of the 7×7x7: Design, Energy, Water initiative, put forth last year by the Department of General Services’ Division of the State Architect. The architecture firms selected did not actually renovate any of the physical buildings; rather, the case studies were meant to demonstrate methods big and small that school districts could employ to save money and improve the quality of education. California State Architect Chester Widom’s goal is to reach zero-net energy in all California schools by 2030.
Inhabitat - Jul 21 Quebec-based BONE Structure recently completed a beautiful 3,200-square-foot home in Stanford that not only meets California’s 2020 Zero Net Energy new home building requirements, but is also seismically resistant and made of 89 percent recycled steel. The building’s “net zero ready” shell is designed to produce near zero waste and is 100 percent recyclable, earthquake-resistant, and impervious to mold and termite damage. The shell of a home can be assembled in just days using a battery-powered drill. BONE Structure has plans to scale up to produce 1,000 residences per year. The net zero energy-ready homebuilder expects to complete 50 more homes in California in 2016.
