LEED Retail Participants on the Rise

Between 2012 and 2013, green building investment jumped by $1 billion in the retail sector, and the percentage of retail owners involved in green building more than doubled, from 18 percent in 2011 to 38 percent in 2013, according to the Leed in Motion: Retail report by the US Green Building Council.

The USGBC projects the number of retailers involved in green building to grow to 52 percent in the next two years, and nearly two-thirds of retail and three quarters of hotel owners expect to have green operations and maintenance systems in place by 2015.

In addition, the following retailers have accomplished the following in their green building efforts:

• Starbucks currently has 500 certified stores in 18 countries.
• Kohl’s has committed to achieving LEED certification for all new stores. The company has certified 434 buildings, or 38 percent of its stores. Of its certifications, 286 are existing building projects.
• Target has committed to pursuing LEED certification for 100 percent of its Canadian stores. To date, 143 are certified.
• Verizon Wireless has 200 certifications, all LEED Silver or higher.

The report also includes profiles of site-specific retail projects including the Destiny USA shopping complex in Syracuse, New York, the Nike Store at the Unicenter in Buenos Aires and the Ušce Shopping Mall in Belgrade, Serbia. Additionally, it lists the top 10 US states and the top 10 countries with LEED for Retail certified projects.

There are about 60,000 LEED green building projects across the globe, spanning 10.6 billion square feet, according to a LEED in Motion: Places and Policies report released last December.

In addition, there are as many as 150,000 LEED-certified green housing units worldwide, a number that more than doubled between 2011 and 2012 and continues to grow, according to a LEED in Motion: Residential report released in June.