Novato council will vote on a draft green-building ordinance. The draft ordinance will contain more relaxed certification requirements than California’s new LEED-based building code which will apply in cities that do not already have a commercial green-building ordinance, like Novato.  If the city does pass the code, it would likely be more “developer friendly” than the California building code.

With an increasing demand for private and public sector construction of green buildings, contractors are responding by training their crews to be LEED Accredited Professionals (LEED APs). DPR Construction Inc., a national builder, is training increasing numbers of staffers to become LEED APs. DPR helps project managers and engineers prepare for LEED accreditation tests through an in-house study course.  DPR's efforts are paying off. In San Diego this year, DPR received a huge boost in its LEED reputation by landing the contract to build the $550 million Palomar Medical Center West Hospital in Escondido, which was commissioned by Palomar Pomerado Health system.

The University of California will move forward with a $1.6 billion hospital complex in San Francisco that is being touted as the greenest medical center ever built in California. The 834,500-square-foot hospital hopes to obtain gold LEED rating. The hospital will apply for a state permit later this year and expects to begin construction as soon as next year on outpatient buildings and on the main hospital buildings by 2010. The facilities are expected to open in 2013 or 2014. The hospital will be funded through a combination of reserves, debt financing and private support.

The U.S. Green Building Council awarded $2 million in research grants to advance sustainable building practices and encourage market transformation. The research fund is generating more than $1 million in matching funds. A quarter of the fund is dedicated to research on occupant impacts in K-12 schools. The council's research committee reviewed 216 pre-proposals and 38 full proposals spanning a broad range of topics. Grants ranging from $90,000 to $250,000 were awarded to 13 research teams.  Research projects selected for funding include a green roof energy calculator, a design for reuse primer, and a transportation energy intensity index.

The greening of commercial real estate is no longer an “arcane issue” according to CFO.com. At one end of the spectrum are the large, environmentally friendly single-tenant towers that were conceived to feature the latest technologies and architecture. At the other end of the spectrum are tenants looking to lease "green" space to portray a positive corporate image. But if tenants are ready to take the green plunge by moving into an environmentally friendly building, then they will want detailed specifications to make sure the building is really green and will reduce operating costs.

Eight years after USGBC's introduction of the LEED program, lawyers are expecting more lawsuits as building owners realize a green stamp of approval translates into good public relations, higher rents and tax breaks. When contractors or design professionals fail to deliver, owners may seek a payback. The green responsibilities need to be clearly defined because owners and tenants are becoming savvy about LEED and are drafting flexibility into leases to cover uncertainties.  Tenants might sign a lease before the developer obtains the final LEED certification, but such tenants may demand rent reductions or termination if the developer misses the LEED targeted level.