While new commercial projects have slowed or stalled for many developers, Neyer Properties has focused on the acquisition of existing buildings and redevelopment projects-- both of which have financial benefits and strong environmental benefits by themselves-- but when you add a LEED certified tag to it, you gain even more.
Making sustainable improvements to existing buildings adds value to the building and the surrounding community. Sustainable renovation strategies can help a building use 25% less energy, reduce water use by 50%, deplete fewer natural resources, and preserve infrastructure and green space compared with new construction and greenfield developments.
Renovating and redeveloping existing buildings extend the life cycle of a structure and is seen by many as a key factor in land conservation and reducing the amount of sprawl.
Ridge Pointe, for example, (the former K-Mart site on Ridge Road near Highland Avenue) is one of Neyer Properties' current mixed-use redevelopment projects. The overall master plan includes office 'flex' space in the old K-Mart building, which will be redeveloped into a new two-story medical office building that will be built to LEED standards.
Office space tenants will be able to walk to additional retail and restaurants at the Ridge Pointe site, which provides healthy exercise for them and eliminates the need to drive, further saving the environment by eliminating vehicle emissions.
Christ Hospital recently opened its new Imaging Center at the LEED Certified Red Bank Crossing II, an office building part of Neyer’s larger mixed-use redevelopment site on Red Bank Expressway. Christ Hospital began embracing sustainable building and operations practices about four years ago, and has saved an estimated 15 to 20 percent, or $1.5 to 2 million, since then. Utility costs were reduced by improving electrical and steam heating systems, eliminating paints and carpets containing VOCs, changing out light bulbs, installing waterless urinals and a drip irrigation system, as well as implementing recycling programs, says Rick Perkinson, director of facilities and maintenance at Christ Hospital.
“People are always concerned about the perceived cost to go green, but in our experience, a LEED Certified or Silver building will take less than a year to pay back any additional costs relative to certification,” said Jeff Chamot, development project manager and LEED AP at Neyer Properties. “This is a small upfront price to pay for an office where utility use and bills will be 20 to 50 percent less each year than in traditionally-built buildings.
“Achieving this level of payback does require a holistic approach, however,” he added. “Designing the project sustainably from day one, having the right team in place as far as architects, engineers and contractors, and knowing the LEED certification system well are all important. If you take a project that has already been designed and re-design it for LEED-certification, it will inevitably cost more than one to two percent.”
“We found that we’d hit on the best of two worlds,” says Dan Neyer, president of Neyer Properties. “Not only could we save energy and natural resources, and feel good about our contribution to sustainable living, but we could save our tenants money, too. That’s something everyone can relate to.”
Find out how much you can save by moving to a green office space by using our Green Savings Calculator on our new green webpage: www.Neyer1.com/green! There, you will also be able to learn more of the details that make a building or site sustainable by watching “A Golden Opportunity – Neyer’s solutions for green development.”
Jeff Chamot
Jchamot@neyer1.com
Learn about this and more at the Cincinnati Energy, Efficiency and the Environment Summit on OCTOBER 2, 2009 8AM-noon at the Duke Energy Center http://www.3esummitcincinnati.org/
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