Last September, Washington, D.C. became the first LEED Platinum city in the world. Now, almost exactly one year later, the U.S. Green Building Council has just named the world’s seventh LEED Platinum city: Chicago.
In August, Chicago ranked as the country’s greenest city by the Green Building Adoption Index for the second year in a row. Approximately 70% of it’s space is green certified. According to the 2017 Energy Benchmarking report, Chicago’s largest buildings cut emissions by almost 20% over the past two years.
See Also: Chicago’s new flagship McDonald’s supersizes the sustainability features
Chicago’s plans for the future include the implementation of the Chicago Energy Rating System, which will be the first of its kind in the U.S. The system will assign a zero- to four-star energy rating to all large properties that are subject to the benchmarking reporting requirements.
“Chicago has not only committed to bold environmental and sustainability goals, but is now delivering on those commitments, leading to real impact across the city,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, President and CEO at USGBC and GBCI. “Mayor Emanuel and the city are proving that improving sustainability and increasing economic growth go hand-in-hand.”
Related Stories
Government Buildings | Nov 25, 2020
New Indiana Toll Road headquarters creates unified environment for staff
New LEED Gold facility consolidates operations for tollway authority.
Coronavirus | Oct 8, 2020
The Weekly show: Statue of Liberty Museum, emotional learning in K-12, LA's climate change vulnerability
The October 8 episode of BD+C's "The Weekly" is available for viewing on demand.
Green | Mar 9, 2020
BuroHappold commits to all new building projects achieving net-zero carbon by 2030
The engineering firm also launched a long-term partnership with ILFI.
Contractors | Jan 20, 2020
Wellness is for builders, not just for buildings
New research on wellness in the construction sector highlights interventions that could be effective in addressing dehydration, weight management, poor air quality, and stress.
Green | Jan 10, 2020
How the new EC3 tool raises the bar on collective action
Nearly 50 AEC industry organizations partnered to develop the groundbreaking Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator.
75 Top Building Products | Dec 16, 2019
101 Top Products for 2019
Building Design+Construction readers and editors select their top building products for the past 12 months in the fourth-annual 101 Top Products report.
75 Top Building Products | Dec 12, 2019
Top Building Envelope Products for 2019
Sto's beetle-inspired exterior coating and Dörken Systems' UV-resistant vapor-permeable barrier are among the 28 new building envelope products to make Building Design+Construction's 2019 101 Top Products report.
Building Owners | Dec 2, 2019
What building owners and AEC teams need to know about New York’s Climate Mobilization Act
On April 18, 2019, the New York City Council passed the Climate Mobilization Act, a suite of laws aimed to meet the city’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
Sustainability | Aug 15, 2019
Paris will soon be home to the world’s largest rooftop farm
Agripolis is spearheading the project.
Codes and Standards | Jul 15, 2019
USGBC calls for proposals for feedback, concepts for next LEED version
The move follows successful public input on LEED 4.1.