Posted on December 2, 2010 by Chris Cheatham

Are You Noticing an Increase in LEEDigation Chatter?

Without a doubt, the green building industry is paying more attention to green building law.  Two recent articles point to a growing consensus that green building litigation -- LEEDigation -- is on the horizon. 

Part One:  ENR

Last Monday, I was rushing around trying to pack for my Thanksgiving trip to Kansas City.  When it comes to packing and getting to the airport, I am a bit of a procrastinator.  I noticed on my phone that I had missed a call from a strange number. 

Turns out, it was the Engineering News Record (ENR) and they wanted to talk about LEEDigation. 

In that moment, I completely forgot about my flight and found myself engrossed in a conversation that resulted in the following article:  "Green Building Thrives in Shaky Economy."  The article is fascinating for a number of reasons.  First, the paragraph introducing green building legal issues hammers home the point of a growing consensus about green building risks:

"Much chatter heard around the show [Greenbuild] centered on the prospect of lawsuits as green-building standards work their way deeper into building specifications and codes."

I would agree with this chatter.  Guarantees of LEED certification are starting to become more common in green building contracts.  And with guarantees, lawsuits are likely to follow.  Here is what I had to say about green building legal issues in the article:

Cheatham, who is credited for coining the term “LEEDigation” in his blog, “Green Building Law Update,” has predicted a rise in these lawsuits. He says he will be watching out for them over the next two years for three reasons: First, owners rushed to get projects registered prior to a 2009 LEED update that required them to report energy data to USGBC. Second, more owners are now expecting LEED to help generate revenue. Third, projects mired in financial troubles may decide not to pursue certification even though it was promised.

“A lot of those projects should be coming up for certification soon,” Cheatham explains, adding that the economy’s shaky condition is “setting the stage for a project not obtaining certification becoming the subject of litigation.”

Do you agree or disagree?  Are you hearing chatter centered around LEED-related lawsuits? 

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Posted on September 16, 2009 by Chris Cheatham

Congratulations to the Top Green Contractors

Congratulations to this year's Top 100 green contractors, as determined by ENR.   

The Top 100 Green Contractors for 2008

RANK FIRM
2008  
1 The Turner Corp., New York, N.Y.
2 Webcor Builders, San Mateo, Calif.
3 Skanska USA Inc., Whitestone, N.Y.
4 Bovis Lend Lease, New York, N.Y.
5 Swinerton Inc., San Francisco, Calif.
6 PCL Construction Enterprises Inc., Denver, Colo.
7 Clark Group, Bethesda, Md.
8 Hensel Phelps Construction Co., Greeley, Colo.
9 Gilbane Building Co., Providence, R.I.
10 The Haskell Co., Jacksonville, Fla.
11 Hunt Construction Group Inc., Scottsdale, Ariz.
12 L.F. Driscoll Co., Bala Cynwyd, Pa.
13 Hoffman Corp., Portland, Ore.
14 The Whiting-Turner Contracting Co., Baltimore, Md.
15 Sundt Construction Inc., Tempe, Ariz.
16 Clayco Inc., St. Louis, Mo.
17 The Weitz Co. LLC, Des Moines, Iowa
18 Austin Industries, Dallas, Texas
19 David E. Harvey Builders Inc., Houston, Texas
20 Holder Construction Co., Atlanta, Ga.
21 Balfour Beatty Construction, Dallas, Texas
22 The Facility Group, Smyrna, Ga.
23 B.L. Harbert International LLC, Birmingham, Ala.
24 JE Dunn Construction Group, Kansas City, Mo.
25 William A. Berry & Son Inc., Danvers, Mass.
26 Caddell Construction Co. Inc., Montgomery, Ala.
27 Structure Tone, New York, N.Y.
28 Opus Group, Minnetonka, Minn.
29 FTR International Inc., Irvine, Calif.
30 Stellar, Jacksonville, Fla.
31 HITT Contracting Inc., Fairfax, Va.
32 James G. Davis Construction Corp., Rockville, Md.
33 Pepper Construction Group, Chicago, Ill.
34 M.A. Mortenson Co., Minneapolis, Minn.
35 Suffolk Construction Co. Inc., Boston, Mass.
36 DPR Construction Inc., Redwood City, Calif.
37 Linbeck, Houston, Texas
38 Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction, San Francisco, Calif.
39 Messer Construction, Cincinnati, Ohio
40 TLT Construction Corp., Wakefield, Mass.
41 The Walsh Group, Portland, Ore.
42 The Walsh Group Ltd., Chicago, Ill.
43 Barton Malow Co., Southfield, Mich.
44 Okland Construction Co. Inc., Salt Lake City, Utah
45 McCarthy Holdings Inc., St. Louis, Mo.
46 Power Construction Co. LLC, Schaumburg, Ill.
47 Andersen Construction Co., Portland, Ore.
48 Duke Construction, Indianapolis, Ind.
49 Grunley Construction Co. Inc., Rockville, Md.
50 Lauth Construction Group LLC, Indianapolis, Ind.


 

The Top 100 Green Contractors for 2008

RANK FIRM
2008  
51 Cox & Schepp Construction Inc., Charlotte, N.C.
52 Barnhart Inc., San Diego, Calif.
53 Saunders Construction Inc., Centennial, Colo.
54 Ryan Cos. US Inc., Minneapolis, Minn.
55 Pioneer General Contractors, Grand Rapids, Mich.
56 Sellen Construction Co. Inc., Seattle, Wash.
57 Bernards, San Fernando, Calif.
58 BE&K Inc., Birmingham, Ala.
59 Kraus-Anderson Construction Co., Minneapolis, Minn.
60 Lusardi Construction Co., San Marcos, Calif.
61 Consigli Construction Co. Inc., Milford, Mass.
62 The Yates Cos. Inc., Philadelphia, Miss.
63 C.W. Driver, Pasadena, Calif.
64 Hall Building Corp., Farmingdale, N.J.
65 New South Construction Co., Atlanta, Ga.
66 McGough Construction, St. Paul, Minn.
67 Mascaro Construction Co. LP, Pittsburgh, Pa.
68 Forrester Construction Co., Rockville, Md.
69 Lease Crutcher Lewis, Seattle, Wash.
70 Reno Contracting Inc., San Diego, Calif.
71 Rockford Construction Co., Grand Rapids, Mich.
72 The Boldt Co., Appleton, Wis.
73 P.J. Dick-Trumbull-Lindy, West Miflin, Pa.
74 Shawmut Design and Construction, Boston, Mass.
75 The Korte Co., Highland, Ill.
76 Brasfield & Gorrie LLC, Birmingham, Ala.
77 O & G Industries Inc., Torrington, Conn.
78 INTECH Construction Inc., Philadelphia, Pa.
79 CORE Construction Group, Morton, Ill.
80 Manhattan Construction Co., Tulsa, Okla.
81 Continental Building Systems, Columbus, Ohio
82 XL Construction Corp., Milpitas, Calif.
83 Workstage, Grand Rapids, Mich.
84 Adolfson & Peterson Constr., Minneapolis, Minn.
85 Butz Enterprises Inc., Allentown, Pa.
86 JM Olson Corp., St. Clair Shores, Mich.
87 Davis Constructors & Engineers Inc., Anchorage, Alaska
88 IMC Construction, Malvern, Pa.
89 Hoar Construction LLC, Birmingham, Ala.
90 Nabholz Construction Corp., Conway, Ariz.
91 Tarlton Corp., St. Louis, Mo.
92 Harper Construction Co. Inc., San Diego, Calif.
93 Creative Contractors Inc., Clearwater, Fla.
94 F.A. Wilhelm Construction Co. Inc., Indianapolis, Ind.
95 Moss & Associates LLC, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
96 Coakley & Williams Construction, Gaithersburg, Md.
97 Elkins Constructors Inc., Jacksonville, Fla.
98 Weis Builders Inc., Minneapolis, Minn.
99 Sahara Inc., West Bountiful, Utah
100 Gray Construction, Lexington, Ky.

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Posted on September 14, 2009 by Chris Cheatham

More Proof Green Building Is Not A Fad

I generally don't like numbers.  But I have never seen such compelling proof that the green building industry is here to stay (ENR - subscription req.):

The Top 100 (green contractors) generated $38.69 billion in revenue in 2008 from projects registered with or certified by third-party rating groups under objective environmental or sustainable development standards.  This marks a startling 70% [increase from] $22.76 billion [in revenue generated] for the group in 2007. 

You may recall that 2008 was the start of the recession and the construction industry began taking hits.  Despite this, the top 100 green contractors saw their revenues from green building projects increase. 

Here's one other incredible statistic for you:

The 2008 (green building revenue) figure amounts to 26.2% of the Top 100's total contracting revenue for 2008. 

In 2009, this number will increase dramatically.  The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is funding many of the new construction projects - and most of the new building projects involve green and energy efficiency standards. 

If you are a contractor, you need a plan to build green.  This is not a fad. 

Related Links
The Top Green Contractors 2008 (ENR-subscription req.)

Photo:  gepiblu

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