Previously, I wrote about Greenbridge Developments, which is a mixed-use development in North Carolina expected to receive LEED Gold certification.  This development is an incredible example of the business case for green building.  They haven’t even broken ground on the development yet, but it’s 2/3 sold out.  Here’s the math.  There are about 99 units planned at an average price of $650,000 each (not averaging in revenues from the retail space).  Wait, is that right?  66 units x $650,000 = $42.9 million?  Wow.  I’d like to see the estimated cost of construction because these numbers are incredible (again, without even factoring in retail revenues). 

Business 2.0 and Erick Schonfeld have produced a video on Greenbridge Developments talking about low-carbon building materials, solar power, C2C, etc.  The video is part of the New Disruptors video series available on iTunes.  You can also view this episode online here. 

Good Links:
++Greenbridge Developments Official Website
++Eco-condos of the Future (Greenbridge) [The Next Net]

UPDATE: 4/27/08 – the market has changed substantially since writing this article and some of the green funds I was in touch with are no longer looking for deals. 

Hey green developers, I’m not sure what stage of planning you’re in and whether you’ve completely figured out your capital stack, but I have some information that may be of assistance in finding a good equity partner.  Feel free to shoot me an email at jetsongreen at yahoo.com, and I can get back to you.  In your email, let me know the company you’re with and some quick details about the green project you are planning.  I may be able to help developers with the following general characteristics:

• Experienced developer of LEED or other third-party green certified real estate assets;
• A reputation for quality and excellence in development;
• Track record of handling projects averaging $50-$75M or more;
• Looking for equity financing for a green development in any real estate product type.

I’m not promising anything, I’m just saying, depending on your situation, I may have information on a good source for equity capital from people that know green development. 

Eleven Times Square is planned to be one of the next green buildings in NYC at 8th Avenue and 42nd Street.  The 1.1 million sf speculative office space, with two floors of retail, will be finished in 2009.  Also, if everything goes as planned, 11 Times Square will be certified to the LEED Silver level by the USGBC.  While it’s still early, apparently the 40-story tower is two months ahead of schedule (but there’s still 2 more years to get behind schedule).  The tower was designed by FXFOWLE Architects, and specific details of green elements are kind of hard to come by.  We’ll keep an eye on it and pass on more details as the specifics come available. 

Good Links:
++Eleven Times Square [Official Website]
++11 Times Square Starts Spec Construction [Globe St.]

::"S2" is short for "Skyscraper Sunday," a weekly article on green skyscrapers posted every Sunday::

You may not think this news is all that sexy, but it’s a pretty big deal.  GE Real Estate is an enormous source of capital funding for commercial properties.  To get an idea of what we’re talking about, here are the figures:  their portfolio is weighted heavier in equity investments at 54% with the other 46% in debt investments; the average investment size is roughly $6.5 million; in 2006, GE RE closed $29 billion in real estate transactions; GE RE has $59 billion in total assets.  Long story short, GE Real Estate is a star player in the real estate lending game, and since they invest more on the equity side (and equity investments are smaller than debt investments), they work with tons of customers.

So starting June 25, 2007, GE Real Estate will operate from its new headquarters in Norwalk, Connecticut, at 901 Main Avenue.  901 Main Avenue is a class A+ property and it’s not inherently green.  BUT, GE RE has registered with the USGBC to go green on the 3rd, 4th, and 5th floors under the LEED-CI (Commercial Interiors) certification system.  LEED Registration is not a guarantee of anything, the project still must be certified upon completion. 

Here’s my take: 
When GE RE is done greening the interiors, people are going to start talking about it.  Employees will like the green building.  The financial benefits of the green building will stand out.  And all those people working inside will start to ask developers why they aren’t pursuing LEED certification, if they aren’t going green.  Now capital is abundant, so this talk will be nothing more than a mere ‘suggestion,’ but eventually, developers will listen and there will be a trickle down.  I’m calling it right now.  GE RE is going to ‘sneeze’ green on their customers and we’re going to see a major ‘tipping point’ in the real estate development industry.  Anyone agree?

[Video: 4:25 min.]  Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (NYSE: AWI) is based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and operates in the business of designing and manufacturing floors, ceilings, and cabinets.  Their current headquarters was built in 1998 and is now part of an elite group of buildings to obtain the LEED Platinum certification for existing buildings.  Feel free to click the above link to see video of Armstrong’s HQ building.  The 3-story building is a glass and steel structure that has workspaces for about 235 employees.  Here are a few things they did to take the green plunge:

• 60% of the building’s waste is recycled;
• Building water use was reduced to 420,000 gallons (from 800,000 gallons);
• Less than 1.5 watts/sf of energy is used, which is 1/2 the national average for comparable properties;
• 75% of the building’s power is supplied by wind energy; and
• Green Seal-certified cleaning products are used throughout the building. 

Now the question is:  if you own your headquarters, have you looked into LEED-EB certification through the USGBC?  We’ve seen Adobe & Owens Corning do it.  Now we have Armstrong.  Who’s next?

Good Links:
++Armstrong LEED-EB Facts & Information Page
++Armstrong Headquarters Receives LEED-EB Platinum Certification [PR]