Baltimore City is poised to adopt a new zoning code that is among the most 'green building friendly' land use ordinances in the country. A green building friendly zoning ordinance is significant when so many local codes including land use ordinances across the country stand in the way of sustainability efforts.… Continue Reading
Dallas has now accepted the first building permit applications under its green building ordinance. All new projects must either: meet the minimum requirements of the Dallas Green Construction Code or be LEED certifiable or be Green Built Texas certifiable or be certifiable under an equivalent green building standard.… Continue Reading
Hastings on Hudson, a village with a population of just over 9,400, located east of the Hudson River, less than 20 miles north of Times Square, conducted a final public hearing last evening on its custom written Green Building Code.… Continue Reading
I am wrapping up my discussion of the Destiny USA project this week with one final post. You can select the Destiny USA tag to review all of the previously published posts on this topic. I will also be publishing a compendium of posts on the topic — plus bonus coverage — later this week. Thank … Continue Reading
The Green Building Certification Institute’s (GBCI) use of third-party certification bodies did not last long. You may recall that in 2009, the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) outsourced green building certification to the Green Building Certification Institute: "LEED certification became so popular that the USGBC had to begin allowing certification through independent certification bodies. . . … Continue Reading
In a previous post, GBLU referenced problems with a green building performance bond requirement in Washington D.C.’s Green Building Act. So what are the apparent problems with this green performance bond? On August 13, 2007, the Surety and Fidelity Association of America and the National Association of Surety Bond Producers detailed the problems with the … Continue Reading
As green building becomes more popular, new green building regulations continue to pop up in U.S. cities. The Aspen Daily News recently highlighted proposed changes to the Aspen Commercial Building Codes that will incorporate very progressive green building strategies. Among the green building strategies, the proposed codes will “require either a photovoltaic solar panel system [solar … Continue Reading
When people ask me about green building lawsuits and legal issues, I usually start with Washington D.C.’s Green Building Act of 2006. The Green Building Act is a very progressive Act that requires both that private and public projects comply with specific green measures. I have written more extensively about the Act in the … Continue Reading
During a recent Green Building Institute Webinar, I had the pleasure of hearing Dan Murphy, Senior Vice President of Environmental Systems Design, speak about potential liability resulting from green building projects. Dan poignantly stated what I have been thinking for awhile: "There has been no significant green building litigation, yet. I emphasize the word … Continue Reading
