Check out THE MISSION LAS VEGAS at Meetup.com
June 30, 2009
Join THE MISSION LAS VEGAS group at Meetup.com and participate in our monthly Meetup where we discuss ways to nurture, cultivate, and promote art, music, culture, sustainability, community, and non-profit organizations at THE MISSION.
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June 30, 2009
If you care about art, music, culture, sustainability, community, or non-profit organizations, then become a fan of THE MISSION on Facebook and be notified of news updates on our programming and development.
Why Not Have a Walkable Arts Cluster? We Do, Sort Of
June 24, 2009
by Kristen Peterson, Las Vegas Sun
Downtown offers a lot, but people will still wonder, ‘What if …’
When word spread a few months ago that the Pinball Hall of Fame would be moving to a spot across the street from the Liberace Museum, the responses were similar:
“How perfect. Two American pop culture venues within a reasonable proximity of each other.”
“The Star Trek Experience should move over there.”
“Revive the Elvis museum, plop it down. Clustered together, we’d have synergy, a place where unique local attractions aren’t 20 strip malls apart.”
Why stop there?
Wouldn’t it be something if the city’s contemporary galleries, artist studios and boutique stores were clustered in one area? Add a coffee shop, a book store, maybe a restaurant and, wow, imagine the possibilities. All the elements are there. Just put them in one place and call it an arts district. The city could invest a little money and designate the area, create lamp post banners, invite business and gallery owners into the storefront spaces and work with them on permits.
There’s the Aerial Gallery that runs along Las Vegas Boulevard downtown. Why not move it to Charleston between Main Street and Las Vegas Boulevard?
That would say so much. People would realize that life is stirring within those seemingly dilapidated buildings, that something is going on. Marketing is everything, you know.
But would it work? Hard to say.
Vegas has an arts district, but it is shabby and fragmented. Within its 18 blocks, the district has a cluster of antique shops, a vintage furniture store (Retro Vegas) full of midcentury modern goodies culled mostly from Las Vegas homes, a Mexican restaurant, the Contemporary Arts Center, Trifecta Gallery, a yoga studio, low-rent artist studios and art and design businesses. Paymon’s Mediterranean Bistro opened this week in the Arts Factory, where Valentino’s Zootsuit Connection, which sells glamour vintage clothing, will relocate. Up the street from the Arts Factory is the Fremont Entertainment District, home to Beauty Bar, the Downtown Cocktail Room and the Don’t Tell Mama piano bar. Around the corner from there is Henri & Odette, a gallery and coffee shop, next to a neighborhood grocery store.
On paper, downtown Las Vegas is rich with culture. Galleries open and close, and that will continue. So will the conversations on how to build and keep momentum in the arts, and the battles with the city on permits and codes. There is the endless sputtering of “if only.”
“If only there were a bar in the arts district …”
“If only there were a coffee shop …”
“If only people would leave their homes and not just on the closing night of a gallery or to go to the downtown First Friday festival …”
Unfortunately we lost some great galleries and boutiques in the area. But Paymon’s and Valentino’s should draw some foot traffic.
How perfect.
If only the Onyx Theatre, home to alternative, original and absurdist plays and dance events, could move into the arts district, then things would take off — especially with the Samuel Beckett Festival happening each year in the Mission Building behind the Arts Factory.
If only people knew they could eat lunch on a Saturday at Paymon’s or Casa Don Juan, then walk across the street to Retro Vegas, then to Gypsy Caravan antiques, then walk up Colorado Avenue to the Arts Factory and look at exhibits at Trifecta Gallery and the Contemporary Arts Center. Wouldn’t that be great?
After that they could get in their cars (because that’s what we do best) and drive over to Henri & Odette for coffee or any one of the new local taverns for a drink.
How perfect.
Source: lasvegassun.com
ACE Downtown Connector – June 2009 Construction Update
June 16, 2009
by Mary Polidoro (polidorom@rtcsnv.com / 702.676.1622)
Construction continues to progress on Casino Center Boulevard from Ogden Avenue to Charleston Boulevard.
Casino Center Boulevard from Ogden Avenue to Clark Avenue will have southbound traffic lanes open for the duration of the project. Northbound and southbound traffic lanes are closed from Clark Avenue to Hoover Avenue. There is one northbound traffic lane open on Casino Center Boulevard between Hoover Avenue and Coolidge Avenue. Traffic lanes remain closed from Coolidge Avenue to Charleston Boulevard. All east-west intersections from Casino Center Boulevard to Charleston will be open with the exception of the intersection at Garces Avenue.
Third Street will have southbound traffic lanes open between Charleston Boulevard and Colorado Avenue. Traffic lanes on Third Street will be open in both directions between Colorado Avenue and Imperial Avenue.
The permanent asphalt patching on Paradise Road from Convention Center Drive to Sahara Avenue has been completed. Night patching will continue over the next few weeks from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. on Paradise Road, north of Sahara Avenue.
Source: rtcsnv.com
Boulder City Unveils 17 Public Art Installations
May 30, 2009
Admirers gather around “Paternity,” created by artist Nick Russetto, while walking along the streets of Boulder City during the 3rd annual Art Scape Art Walk. At a selling price of $4,000, the piece is a reflection of Russetto’s personal celebration of the joy his two children have brought to his heart. Photo by MONA SHIELD PAYNE / SPECIAL TO THE SUN.
‘Art Scape’ hopes to bring vibrancy to city’s downtown area
Boulder City art lovers were treated to a night at the museum in their own back yard on Friday.
About 40 residents gathered at the Boulder Dam Hotel on a warm summer evening for the official unveiling of 17 sculptures recently installed downtown as part of the Boulder City Public Art Scape program. Art Scape, which is in its third year, brings public art installations to the downtown area to promote tourism and enrich the community.
This year’s collection incorporates a range of materials and styles.
Outside the Boulder Dam Hotel sits a detailed bronze sculpture of a little girl peeking over her brother’s shoulder as he reads a book. Across the street, a glimmering statue of steel, foam and fiberglass forms a treble clef, but only if viewed from the right spot. At the end of the block and around the corner, a whimsical daisy stretches high into the air, the green leaves at its base creating a bowl chair for passersby in need of a break.
Organizers said the committee draws from a broad palate of tastes to select the pieces, which are submitted from across the country.
“I get so excited about all the art,” said Darlene Burke, who founded the program and organizes the annual sculpture tour. “It can be all kinds and I appreciate all of it.”
The pieces will be on display for a year, and many on the Friday tour said they were eager for the opportunity to learn more about the thought behind the pieces that will be a fixture in their community for the next 12 months.
Boulder City Mayor Pro Tem Mike Pacini, who served as the emcee and tour guide of the event, shared background information about the artists and insight into the pieces at each stop. Several artists were on-hand to answer questions and discuss their work with viewers.
“It was nice to see something like that go on in this little town,” said participant Joe Ray. “It was all clean fun. We all enjoyed it and the art was fantastic. This was a lot of talent.”
Throughout the year residents can vote on their favorite sculpture. The piece that receives the most votes will be purchased by the town using funds raised by the Public Art Scape committee.
The program has purchased three pieces to add to the city’s growing public art collection. Several pieces have also been purchased and donated by local families and organizations, including the Sunrise Rotary, which gave the city a bust of two eagle heads perched on the corner of Arizona Street and Nevada Way.
“We love the art walk downtown and the culture. We love the sense of community that is unique to this town,” Sunrise Rotary President-elect Paul Krumm said. “We hope that more of these pieces are purchased and remain in the downtown area.”
Organizers say they hope the pieces spur traffic to local businesses by encouraging residents and visitors to slow down and spend more time exploring Boulder City attractions and shops.
“(It gets people to) come in town and they stroll about. They just don’t rush in and rush out,” said Mariola O’Brien, a member of the Public ArtScapes committee.
Many participants agreed that the art could draw more people downtown.
“I think it makes downtown more of a place people want to go because they can walk around and see the pieces,” said Bill Rackey, who has lived in Boulder City since the 1960s. “It definitely beautifies the town and brings some culture to the town.”
In addition to getting tourists and residents alike to slow down and soak up all that downtown Boulder City has to offer, organizers and artists said they hope the program infuses culture and creativity into the community.
“Art enhances the community. It’s a feeding of the soul, if you will,” said Fedrico Aguirre, whose work has been featured in this year’s and last year’s collection. “Everything you see here is the expressing of someone wanting to show their creativity.”
After the art walk, organizers announced the three top pieces from last year’s collection. The winning piece, “Bouncin’,” by Scott Streadbeck, will be purchased by the city and remain on display.
Lynne Jordan, a member of the committee, expressed gratitude for what the added art works have contributed to the community.
“You have brought excitement, conversation and beauty to our small town, and we thank you,” she said to the artists.
Several of the artists who joined in on the walk said they were grateful for the visibility provided by the program.
“It’s a great way to get your art seen, especially when the economy is the way it is and galleries are so expensive,” said Nathan Slape, who created an abstract female bust out of blue and grey marble specifically to submit to the show. “With people coming through for the Hoover Dam, you’ve got a lot of eyeballs seeing yours stuff.”
Pacini said the program has been the perfect addition to the community he represents.
“Boulder City is like Christmas. The shops downtown are like the presents and now we’re hanging the ornaments. It’s a great addition,” he said.
Source: lasvegassun.com
Transportation Experts Have an ACE Up Their Sleeves
May 29, 2009
Three public bus models converge at the Downtown Transportation Center on May 25. At the left is a Citizens Area Transit bus, to the right is a Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) bus used between downtown and North Las Vegas and behind that, a pair of double-deck Deuce buses. When the Regional Transportation Commission begins its ACE bus routes along the Las Vegas Strip next year, vehicles similar to the MAX buses will be used. Photo by ULF BUCHHOLZ.
By Richard N. Velotta, In Business reporter
Anyone who has watched tourists load and unload the popular double-decker Deuce buses on the Strip knows that there has to be a better way to move visitors up and down our fabulous neon byway.
The problem is that with the Citizens Area Transit system the fare normally is paid when you get on board. On the Deuce, there’s one door in the front (the entrance, where you pay the driver) and one toward the center or back (the exit). Because many of the Strip riders are tourists and pay by the ride — and there are dozens of riders at nearly every Strip bus stop — there is a big logjam to climb aboard.
On top of that, they are tourists so they ask questions like, “Where does this bus go?” Transit officials tried to alleviate some of the continuous questions to drivers by hiring some high school students to serve as “Deuce Ambassadors” to answer Las Vegas and bus system questions.
Because the route is up and down the Strip, by far the most popular route in the system, the long lines never seem to discourage ridership. It’s part of the Vegas experience.
Anyone who has been on the Strip during a busy weekend knows that mass transportation is one of the answers to clearing some of the congestion. It’s a nearly hopeless cause to suggest that more Strip employees use the buses to alleviate some of the traffic.
Yes, there has to be a better way. And by January, we’ll get it. That’s when the Deuce’s new Strip cousin, the ACE, will make its debut.
Many already have seen what the ACE buses look like. They’re running along Las Vegas Boulevard North from downtown Las Vegas toward Nellis Air Force Base.
The Regional Transportation Commission calls the ACE system “the showcase transportation initiative for the Las Vegas Valley.” The bullet-shaped vehicles look like — and will function like — light-rail trains. As much as possible, they will travel in dedicated lanes.
I’ve ridden two of the West’s newest mass-transit systems and can attest to the convenience of using light rail in Denver and Phoenix. But unfortunately, light rail is far too expensive for us now. ACE is the logical middle step between traditional bus service and light rail.
So what will set ACE apart from the Deuce?
The biggest difference will be in the paying for a ticket. Instead of buying a pass on the bus, tickets will be available at stations. Bus loading will be similar to light-rail train loading with doors opening widely to allow passengers to get on and off quickly. Station platforms will be built so that passengers won’t have to go up or down steps to get aboard.
In addition, the ACE line — the Strip and downtown route will be known as the “Gold Line” — will have fewer stops than the Deuce, potentially making every trip faster.
The Gold Line will have 16 stations with six in the downtown area in dedicated lanes. The northern end of the route will be at Bonneville Avenue and Grand Central Parkway near the Las Vegas Premium Outlets.
From there, the bus will go north to the World Market Center and to Symphony Park before turning east toward Casino Center and the Fremont Street Experience. Then, it will head south to Garces and Coolidge avenues (the downtown arts district). From that point, it leaves the dedicated lanes for surface streets and continues south via Third Street to Main Street.
The next stop is the Stratosphere, where the bus will cut over to Paradise Road and stop at the Sahara, right below the southern terminus of the Las Vegas Monorail. At Convention Center Drive, it will stop near the Las Vegas Convention Center and cut west to the Strip.
Once on Las Vegas Boulevard, the bus will stop at the Fashion Show mall and Wynn Las Vegas; CityCenter, Bellagio and Paris Las Vegas; Excalibur and the MGM Grand; Mandalay Bay; Town Center and the Callaway Golf Center; and finally, the Las Vegas Outlet Center on the southbound run only.
From there, it curls back to the north, using Warm Springs Road and Gilespie Street, where the southern end of the route is the South Strip Transfer Terminal.
Jacob Snow, RTC general manager, is enthusiastic about the ACE’s arrival and last week shared that and his views of other Southern Nevada transportation developments at a breakfast meeting of the local chapter of National Association of Industrial and Office Properties, the Commercial Retail Development Association.
Snow said about 33,000 riders use the Deuce on the Strip every day. With both systems, the commission is expecting 45,000 to 50,000 Strip riders, especially with the prospect of more employee commuters.
Like the Deuce, ACE tickets will cost $3 a ride, $7 for an all-day pass and $15 for a three-day pass.
ACE routes are planned to Henderson and to northwest Las Vegas. The Boulder Highway “Green Line” is expected to be running by late 2010 or early 2011. Snow said to the northwest, the “ACExpress” would run along U.S. 95 from Durango Drive and use the high-occupancy-vehicle diamond lanes and the express lanes under construction on Interstate 15.
On other transportation matters, Snow told the breakfast attendees why the state and federal highway trust funds are in trouble (they’re funded by gasoline taxes and motorists are paying less for fuel as well as driving less in recessionary times resulting in less revenue) and on how stimulus funds are going to be spent in Southern Nevada (mostly on roadway repairs, the new downtown transit terminal and some new Park-and-Ride lots).
“We’ll have more groundbreakings coming up than we’ve ever had in the past,” he said.
Snow also made a case for toll roads, but admitted that unless there was a major change in direction as the legislative session comes to a close that it would be one more issue that would be put off until at least 2011.
One proposed road that needs immediate attention and would benefit from tolling would be a bypass of Boulder City. Snow warned that when the O’Callaghan-Tillman Bridge at Hoover Dam is completed, the bottleneck would only move to Boulder City unless something is done.
Snow also gave his 2 cents worth on the proposed DesertXPress high-speed train proposal that would link Las Vegas with Victorville, Calif. Snow acknowledged that while Victorville and not somewhere farther south into the Los Angeles Basin as the southern terminus could be the train’s “Achilles heel,” he feels a connection to Palmdale to the west to link with California’s high-speed train network would make DesertXPress viable.
“And right now,” he said, “we’re supportive of anything that will improve mobility into the (resort) corridor.”
Source: lasvegassun.com
Festivals, seminars, wine tastings and more used to increase mall traffic
By Sandra M. Jones
With money tight these days, Julie Liu shops only when she needs a specific item — a dress for a work event or a replacement tube of mascara.
“It’s very focused shopping,” Liu said. “I just don’t stroll around the mall looking aimlessly.”
But when the 28-year-old jewelry designer found herself at the Shops at North Bridge in May attending a Step Up Women’s Network charity event, the shopping bug made an unexpected appearance. She wandered into Nordstrom and bought a pair of Cole Haan sandals, an item that was not on her shopping list.
Impulse shopping has fallen by the wayside with the recession, and shopping center owners are trying to bring it back. With cost-conscious consumers hesitant to shop for fun, malls are turning to a time-tested strategy of staging events that have little to do with shopping in hopes that once people come through the door, they will let down their guard and buy something.
The nation’s biggest malls are pumping up their menu of events this year, adding music festivals, wine tastings, art fairs, high school fundraisers, and cooking seminars for kids, to name a few, as they try to work their way back into Americans’ daily lives.
“You go to places out of habit and you go to malls out of habit,” said Brian Kilcourse, managing partner at Retail Systems Research LLC, a Miami-based retail consulting firm. “When times get tight, you might forget about the fun of having an ice cream cone and strolling the mall and people watching. Free events and free entertainment are very attractive when times are tough. If you can’t afford to take the family out to a movie, you might still go down and hear a band at the mall.”
Mall event planner Nancy Walters estimates the number of events at shopping centers has increased 20 percent this year. Charity and community affairs are particularly in vogue as it allows malls with limited marketing budgets to provide the event space while the sponsoring organization pays the bill.
“When business is good, shopping centers tend to pull back their events,” said Walters, president of San Diego-based Very Special Events. “When they need to draw more traffic, then they start up again.”
Simon Property Group Inc., the country’s largest mall operator, has boosted the number of events to 11,000 at its 386 malls this year, ranging from Little League registrations to full-fledged festivals.
“We are aggressively developing new events this year and significantly adding to the base of events conducted last year,” said Mikael Thygesen, chief marketing officer for the Indianapolis-based company.
Last Saturday, the parking lot at Orland Square Mall in south suburban Orland Park was turned into a music and sports festival featuring freestyle motocross, skateboarding and local bands. The event, sponsored by teen retailer Journeys and others, drew a crowd of 22,000.
The festival, which tours, attracted similar throngs of people at other malls this spring: 18,000 at White Marsh Mall in Baltimore and 15,000 at the Galleria at Sunset outside Las Vegas, said tour operator Brian Gass, head of Laguna Niguel, Calif.-based Sandbox Marketing LLC.
Such numbers are enticing to mall operators who have watched Americans’ appetite for hanging out at the mall disappear in recent years as dual-career households, a crescendo of after-school activities and the Internet changed the way Americans shopped. Throw a recession into the mix and even short trips to the mall are in jeopardy.
Shopping traffic in the U.S. fell 16 percent in March from the year-ago period, after declines of 9 percent in February and 13 percent in January, according to ShopperTrak RCT Corp., a Chicago-based firm that measures the movements of shoppers. The firm predicts second-quarter traffic will continue to decline as household wealth shrinks, job losses rise and consumer confidence remains at near-record lows.
“We’re marketing our heads off to keep the place fresh and relevant,” said Mike Jaffe, developer at the Arboretum of South Barrington. The outdoor mall held its first progressive wine event in January and plans another on June 25 to benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Likewise, Macerich introduced a “Movies in the Park” series at its Biltmore Fashion Park in Phoenix this spring, showing classic movies on the lawn within walking distance from Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue. The weekly program went for two months and attracted about 600 to 700 people to each movie, said Traci Weber, senior vice president of marketing at the Santa Monica, Calif.-based real estate firm that also owns the Shops at North Bridge on North Michigan Avenue in Chicago.
“We’re definitely getting more creative about how we’re getting people to our centers,” Weber said. “That’s half the battle, getting them there.”
Source: chicagotribune.com
Vegas Named On ‘Best Cities for Fresh Start’ List
May 22, 2009
By Steve Green
Job openings aren’t plentiful in Las Vegas and the city certainly isn’t known for having a high volunteerism rate. Yet Las Vegas made the top 12 in a Relocation.com list of the “Best Cities for a Fresh Start.”
The top nine are Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Charlotte, Denver, Columbus, Indianapolis, Washington-Baltimore, Atlanta, and Oklahoma City.
Las Vegas is tied at No. 10 with Houston and Seattle.
Besides jobs and the volunteerism rate, another criteria is affordable housing — and Las Vegas seems to be getting more affordable by the day.
“With the unemployment rate climbing as the national economy sags, more people are searching for communities that offer greater economic opportunity and a better standard of living,” Relocation.com said this week.
The company said it took a wide-ranging look at factors that would appeal to someone looking for a fresh start.
The factors include city “popularity” based on consumer requests for moving quotes to move to that city; economic-growth prospects; home affordability and the strength of a community as reflected by volunteerism rates.
Relocation.com said it looked at communities with more than 1 million people.
“Although many midsized cities are flourishing, they tend to be tied to a single industry or a government agency, while larger cities generally have more diverse economic bases,” the company said.
Source: lasvegassun.com
Demographic Trends Now Favor Downtown
May 20, 2009
by Jonathan Weber
Growth across the country moves away from suburban and exurban fringe
“Location, location, location” has been the mantra of the real estate industry for as long as anyone can remember. Still, as the national economy transforms in the wake of the economic crisis, the power of place will prove to be ever more important for a broad range of small businesses.
Most demographic and market indicators suggest that growth and development across the country are moving away from the suburban and exurban fringe and toward center-cities and close-in suburbs.
What’s behind this shift? Empty-nesters don’t need the big house and don’t want to mow the big lawn. High gas prices are making long commutes less practical. The urban renaissance in big cities ranging from New York to Portland, Ore. — and the revival of charming, vibrant downtowns in small cities like Missoula, Mont. — is making the bedroom suburb and the strip mall seem positively dull.
Retailers are the most obviously affected by these trends. For decades, locating a store in a mall on the fringe rather than downtown had a lot of obvious advantages: plenty of easy parking, tons of drive-by traffic from big-box neighbors, and newer buildings with better infrastructure.
These benefits won’t disappear overnight. Over the long run, though, they will diminish in importance, especially if more big retail chains and shopping-mall operators go out of business. Downtown shopping districts, meanwhile, will benefit from increased investment and more proximate residents. If we assume, as many economists do, that the country is “over-retailed,” some downtown development plans based on more shopping will stall, but the center will still prosper relative to the fringe — and more businesses might find the downtown storefront affordable.
Indeed, the advantages of a good downtown location extend to many businesses that are not dependent on walk-in traffic. At NewWest.Net, our alley storefront with a prominent sign is probably one of our best bits of marketing. Every month, we host an art show as part of the downtown “First Friday” art walk, which brings a lot of people into the office and gives us a chance to chat them up about NewWest.Net. Most meetings don’t require getting into a car. Our very effective Downtown Association offers kinship (which can lead to deals) with neighboring businesses.
Locating downtown is sometimes associated with the “buy local” movement — the idea that the community benefits if businesses and consumers spend their money with independent, locally owned businesses. But you don’t have to buy into this ideologically to position yourself as the friendly, local alternative to the big national chain, and part of the way to do that is to locate in a cool space — in a historic building, say — rather than a sterile strip mall or office park.
All of this might seem counterintuitive, as the Internet revolution was supposed to render place less important, even irrelevant. If we can all telecommute from our bedrooms, buy our supplies online, and serve our customers over the Internet, why does that pesky and expensive office or retail store even matter?
The answer is simple: Humans are social beings, and all the time we spend at our computers makes us, if anything, even hungrier for real-world interactions. The Internet, paradoxically, is making place even more important. Marrying great online services with appealing real-world presence will be the secret to success for many a company. So pay attention to where you are and to where your community is going.
Copyright Washington Post.Newsweek Interactive
Source: msnbc.msn.com/id/30810275/
The Cost Efficacy of Building Green
May 13, 2009
by Debra Hazel
NEW YORK CITY – The economic crisis continues, but that shouldn’t preclude investing in sustainability which can lead to both short and long-term financial benefits, said speakers at the RealShare Green Buildings virtual conference, held Wednesday.
These can include higher rents, stronger tenant relationships, and better sales values over time. “Two thousand and seven was undeniably the year of green,” said keynote speaker Mark Hansen, senior vice president-value added conversions, AMB Property Corp. “Interest in LEED certification exploded. It also was a year of [another type of] green–there was a lot of cheap money.” Last year, however, saw a major shift, with new development scarce.
“Now the real interest is in existing portfolios,” said Brenna Walraven, managing director and national property management portfolio manager for USAA Real Estate. “The real focus is on the operating expense side.”
For now, the appeal is on short-term benefits. Fortunately, a number of initiatives can be undertaken at little to no cost, noted Mychele Lord, principal of Lord Green Real Estate Strategies. These include green cleaning techniques, integrated pet management, sustainable landscaping and managing the indoor environment through the use of low volatile organic compound (VOC) products.
Development isn’t impossible, however, particularly if cost-effect measures are in place. AMB has revised its development specifications for all projects to achieve a LEED Silver rating, by implementing water-efficient landscaping, replacing annual plants with perennials, including green spaces in site plan, reflective roofing and exploring photovoltaics, Hansen noted.
Finding the funds requires a lot more research, though. “Think of it as a three-legged stool, [consisting of] incentives, contractors and private financing,” said Bruce Ficke, executive vice president, global client solutions for Cushman & Wakefield.
Developers should look for all state, local and Federal programs, even including fee waivers to fund their development. Green contractors can be found in a number of sources, there are small banks that specialize in green financing, Ficke said.
The greatest incentives for going green, however, come from the tenants themselves. “Tenants want green buildings because they’re better buildings and easier to operate,” Hansen said.
Sustainable buildings also can serve to attract a younger workforce, said Vance Voss, managing director-portfolio management of Principal Real Estate Investors. “A building that is not green will be harder to lease,” Voss said.
Relationships can improve, too, as owner/managers educate their tenants on both the building improvements and how the clients can modify their own behavior to help save resources, Hansen said.
“I still think more and more companies will want their facilities to be green,” Hansen said. Brownfields will provide ample opportunity for redevelopment, and municipalities increasingly are looking for LEED-certified projects, he added.
Knowledge is the key. Voss recommended that landlords give tenants real-time feedback regarding their energy usage, much as hybrid cars display their fuel efficiency while in motion. “We have to educate and incentivize the tenant to behave better,” he said.
It’s also important that owners promote their green efforts–tenants won’t know a project is sustainable if they aren’t told. The result can be higher rents, and better retention of existing tenants.
“We believe you market everything you’ve done to make your project green,” Hansen said. “Put it in your brochures, talk it up with tenants, mention it on your property tours.”
All of the efforts will combine for major savings in the short-term, and additional benefits over time, the speakers said. AMB’s green buildings achieve the highest rates in their markets, and are more appealing to buyers, according to Hansen.
In addition, they should be more attractive when the acquisitions market comes back. “You don’t want to buy an asset today that’s one of the least efficient in the market,” said William Hankowsky, chairman, president & CEO of Liberty Property Trust.
“The capital markets are very constrained from a debt and equity perspective. Sometimes you have to have a longer-term view,” Voss said. “Green buildings are going to lease up quicker, will have a higher tenant retention ratio, and will appeal to a broader swath of buyers in the future.”
Source: globest.com
