LOS ANGELES, CA - Los Angeles is tops in the number of environment-friendly commercial buildings built nationwide, according to a report released last month by the Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate at the University of San Diego. The report was based on information provided by CoStar, a national data base of commercial properties. Cities were ranked based on how many of their buildings have either Energy Star or LEED status.
The report ranked Los Angeles as No. 1 nationwide, with 100 energy-efficient buildings consisting of 26.2 million square feet.
Houston ranks second in the number of LEED and Energy Star buildings, the report stated, with a total of 46 buildings consisting of 21.1 million square feet.
Washington, D.C. was a close third behind Houston. It has 19.8 million square feet of energy-efficient space in 61 buildings.
Rounding out the top five are New York (12.3 million square feet in 11 buildings) and San Francisco (11.9 million square feet) in 30 buildings.
Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy that encourages the use of energy efficient products and practices to save money and protect the environment. The program measures a building's energy performance and recognizes top performing facilities with the Energy Star.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System from the U.S. Green Building Council is the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.
Source: BizJournals.com