GreenBuild Blog

California Adopts “Green Building Code,” but Requirements are Modest and Voluntary

Saturday, July 19, 2008

In what is being trumpeted as the country’s first statewide green building code, the California Building Standards Commission adopted a code requirement that all new buildings be 15% more energy efficient, 20 percent more water efficient and use 50% less water for landscaping, but it’s still voluntary…

Are green homes obstacles to homebuilders or a path out of the current wilderness?

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Reported to me from the Pacific Coast Builders Conference a comment by an experienced homebuilder: “Our conventional business model is obsolete.” Is it possible that building green homes could offer homebuilders a pathway to a more financially and ecologically sustainable future?

Can Green Building Help Lifestyle Centers Succeed?

Thursday, July 17, 2008

“Too many malls swamp developers” trumpets the Wall St. Journal headline today, citing the slowing economy for the failure of many lifestyle (open-air) centers to fully lease their premises. I’m wondering if a focus on green buildings and green development would help developers and retailers gain an advantage in a more difficult economic circumstance.

Jones Lang LaSalle acquires Green Globes developer; strategic move or desperation?

Sunday, July 13, 2008

In a story widely followed last week, Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL) acquired the developer of the Green Globes rating tool. Is this a clever strategic move or a desperate attempt to catch up to or circumvent the move by the largest industry player CB Richard Ellis (NYSE: CBG) to dominate the LEED for Existing Buildings system?

Will green building and green products be retailers’ salvation?

Friday, July 11, 2008

A Wall Street Journal article this week (July 9, page B8), “Retailers recalibrate pitch to strapped consumers,” points out that some retailers are investing money to differentiate themselves, trying to boost market share and be ready to grow again when the recession ends. Could green buildings and greater green product selections be coming to the top of the pile of retailers’s ideas?

Green Building Grows Up, Raises Mainstream Design and Construction Issues

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Much as we would like to think that everything we do in green building is on the sid e of the angels and above normal criticism and everyday concerns, it really isn’t the case. Anyone designing or building a green building needs to take the same degree of care as with conventional buildings…

Strategic Implications of Sustainable Development

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Amory Lovins’ interview in the McKinsey Quarterly online journal contains a gem of an insight for understanding the business case for green buildings and sustainable development, particularly for the shopping center and office park developer.