Is Retail Catching Up? 
 


There are promising signs that retailers are beginning to realize that they can enjoy significant bottom line benefits by greening their real estate. In addition to the billions in savings that are available as a result of reducing energy and water consumption, significant financial benefits are possible as a result of recycling and improving indoor environmental conditions, all of which also contribute to the so-called "softer" benefits of improved brand value, enhanced ability to attract and retain talent and compliance with increasingly stringent regulatory requirements.

Last month we reported on IKEA's aggressive journey toward energy independence (see Green Edge September News Alertand this month we acknowledge other encouraging retail real estate sustainability accomplishments.  

Walgreens Net Zero Store 

Walgreens is scheduled to open its first net-zero-energy-use store in Evanston, IL, in November. According to company executives, stores like this one will enable the company to shave close to $100 million off its annual $300 million power bill, thus justifying the price tag to develop this store: twice that of a typical Walgreens. 
 
The Evanston store incorporates a variety of renewable energy and energy efficient technologies, including geothermal wells, parking lot wind turbines, rooftop solar panels, LED lighting, energy efficient mechanical equipment and a "smart" energy management system.  
 
Rooftop solar panels and LED lighting installations. Images courtesy of Walgreens' Net Zero Community Facebook Page, Oct. 17, 2013 update. 

According to Menno Evers, Walgreens Director of Energy and Sustainability, the Evanston Store will use 50% less energy than a typical store, as a result of both efficient technologies and operational changes. For instance, this store will close at 10pm vs the 24/7 operations that typify many Walgreens stores. 
 
In addition to the projected annual cost savings that Walgreens expects to enjoy by employing the technologies that will be tested at the Evanston store, Walgreens is not turning a blind eye toward the increased brand value, goodwill and positive media attention that accompany cutting edge sustainability initiatives. Check out Walgreens' Net Zero Energy Community page on Facebook, which so far has garnered over 1,000 likes. We like it also, so much so that we're planning to visit the Evanston store on opening day!   
 
McDonald's Franchisee Invests $1M 

Another bright spot on the retail horizon is the $1M green building investment by McDonald's franchisee Bob Jursich. Jursich's recently completed restaurant in Garfield Heights, OH, incorporated many of the same technologies employed at the Walgreens net-zero-energy-use store, including LED lights, solar panels and a geothermal heating and cooling system. 
 
Capturing waste heat from refrigeration equipment to provide a steady stream of hot water for dishwashers and restrooms and reducing solar heat gain with high efficiency glazing and a white roof should result in additional efficiencies. Other green features include exterior ceramic tiles that pull pollutants from the air and a rooftop storm water collection system.
 
According to Jursich, it began with "could we and what if and snowballed from there. We kept looking and asking ourselves, what can we do to be more efficient and environmentally friendly." Jursich and McDonald's wrestled with these questions for 18 months before McDonald's gave Jursich the green light.     

 

Pioneers like Jursich, who are willing and able to get out ahead of the pack, even taking on 900-pound gorillas like McDonald's, are an inspiration to us all. The next time I am in Cleveland, I'll be enjoying lunch at the Garfield Heights McDonald's. Kudos to you Bob Jursich!    

We are encouraged by these developments, but there is a long way to go from a zero-net-energy-use outlier to zero-net-energy-use as the "business-as-usual" standard for the built environment. Let us help you move along that spectrum and future proof your properties and companies. You can't afford not to!

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We Look Forward to Hearing from You
 
If you have questions about anything you've read in this newsletter or if you are wondering how to meet your own green challenges, we'd love to hear from you.  

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Ellen SinreichHappy Halloween! 
 
What a great time of year. I'm always energized by the uptick in activity and momentum that occurs in the fall.  

This
fall we focused our sustainability lens on retail real estate and are encouraged by the carbon footprint reduction efforts of retailers, two of which we highlight in this issue, and retail real estate owners, who are collaboratively developing a Property Efficiency Scorecard to benchmark the environmental impact of their properties. The Scorecard is being beta tested and may be launched before year-end. Stay tuned for more information.  
 
As I pointed out in January of this year, although the hurdle of justifying upfront costs to green the built environment will continue to be high, we see evidence that it is less and less insurmountable, both for behemoths such as Walgreens and for smaller owners and tenants as well. 
 
Let me know what your company is doing to reduce its carbon footprint and we'll help you make sure that the financial and environmental returns on your green investments are maximized! 
 
Warmly,
 
Energy Efficiency is a
Shining Star
 


According to a recently published report by the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the state of the U.S. energy economy has never been better. 
 
In its first annual Energy and Environment Report, NRDC concludes, based on an "exhaustive" evaluation of economic, security and environmental indicators, that U.S. energy use in 2012 was below 1999 levels even though our economy grew by more than 25% during that period. 
 
The report highlights that "...we are saving billions of dollars annually, helping U.S. workers and companies compete worldwide and making our country more energy-secure" and that much of the credit goes to energy efficiency, finding that "...we have more than doubled the economic productivity of the oil that runs our vehicles and the natural gas and electricity that runs almost everything else."   

Join Green Edge at RetailGreen
 


Don't miss this year's RetailGreen conference, where Green Edge joins the most progressive retailers and retail landlords to offer in-depth insights into how sustainable operations and green building technologies can improve bottom line results. This year, in addition to helping to plan the conference, Green Edge will be presenting the New Green Lease Paradigm: How Retailers and Landlords Are Partnering to Allocate the Costs and Benefits of Greening Their Projects.  

RetailGreen takes place on December 3rd and 4th in Phoenix, AZ. For more information, please contact us. 
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