Santa Monica has 1st LEED certified parking garage
You're probably wondering whether the term 'green parking garage' is a helpless oxymoron, since it accommodates the carbon spewing vehicles that we love to hate. Regardless, there is such a structure and, unsurprisingly, it's located in California. The recently completed Santa Monica Civic Center Parking Garage is the first ever LEED certified parking structure. No joke, this parking garage is impressively green. Its roof-level parking is actually shaded by an large array of solar panels and the bulk of its building materials are recycled, including the glass. Other features like an in house water treatment facility helps protect the local watershed by capturing the garage's oily runoff before it can escape. It also provides 14 spaces for electric vehicles, complete with an outlet for recharging.
I understand that symbolically it's not the greenest type of structure around, but overall I think it's a good thing. Like it or not, we're still going to be driving vehicles of one kind or another for a long time. What do you think?
[via Inhabitat]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-16-2008 @ 11:12AM
TheSpuddy said...
I think this great. I like how it gathers the oil before going down the drain. I wish we had that in downtown Portland. Many garages, right next to the river. Yummy. I like how they have spots for bikes too. And the outlets for the electric cars are public? Free power! Woohoo!
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6-10-2008 @ 3:56PM
simon salloom said...
I sell real estate in Santa Monica California and here is some info about what we are doing in our city-- Santa Monica Real Estate will hopefully become some of the greenest in the country soon. I know that it may not be as legit as you and I would like but they are certainly trying. You have to admit it's a rare city to put this kind of emphasis on green real estate construction etc.
Here is some info on Santa Monica's Green City initiatives for anyone who's interested: # On the West Coast, Santa Monica wants to be the nation's first "Net Zero" city. Through energy efficiency, solar and other renewable energy, the city envisions generating clean energy that matches its total energy consumption. This will help leave Santa Monica Real Estate cleaner and healthier for all.
I have a bit more about this on my blog at my web-site: Santa Monica Real Estate
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6-10-2008 @ 3:56PM
simon salloom said...
http://www.santamonicarealestatesearch.com Here's the link to my site on Santa Monica Real Estate
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