First Private Entity in Lee County, Florida, to be Awarded LEED Gold Designation
FORT MYERS, FL – Northern Trust announced today that it is the first private entity in Lee County, Florida, to be awarded the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold designation by the U.S. Green Building Council for its new office building in Fort Myers. The building is recognized for its environmental innovation in design, water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and its use of sustainable materials and resources.
Northern Trust’s Fort Myers office opened for business on July 13, 2009, and its Gold Certification under the LEED “New Construction” category became official on October 2, 2009. This category provides a set of performance criteria for certifying the design and construction standards of commercial buildings.
The following includes highlights of the Northern Trust building’s sustainable qualities:
- 84.7 percent reduction in irrigation water consumption
- 44.5 percent reduction in potable water consumption through use of low-flow water closets, urinals, lavatories, showers, and sinks
- 18.6 percent energy cost savings when compared to similar buildings using baseline energy performance modeling
- 25 percent of materials consisted of recycled products
- 32 percent of materials were harvested and manufactured locally (within 500 miles of the project site)
- Building has 100 percent use of low/no-volatile organic compound carpet systems, adhesives, sealants, paints, & coatings in the building
- 77 percent of construction waste was recycled and diverted from landfills
- Strict indoor air quality standards, erosion and sediment control measures were held throughout building construction
Northern Trust Fort Myers president Sandy Robinson said, “Northern Trust is celebrating 30 years in the Southwest Florida market this year. We could not imagine a more ideal demonstration of our commitment to the Lee/Collier community than the opening of a workplace that fits our values and the needs of our world today.”
Kraft Construction provided preconstruction services and coordinated subcontractors and vendors to ensure the building was delivered on time, within budget and in conformity with sustainable best practices and LEED requirements.
“Kraft Construction Company is proud to have been an integral part of the Northern Trust Ft. Myers Office construction project. Kraft has been an active member of the USGBC and a leader in sustainable construction; successfully completing multiple LEED projects throughout the state of Florida for close to a decade,” said Keith Wulber, senior vice president, Kraft Construction Company, Inc. “It is gratifying for Kraft to partner with Northern Trust. To achieve LEED Gold certification exemplifies the deep commitment of Northern Trust and the team as a whole to environmentally sustainable practices.”
Northern Trust’s Fort Myers building was also recently named as one of the best new green projects in the Southeast region by the editorial advisory board of the Real Estate & Construction Review.
Northern Trust’s commitment to sustainable building is part of the company’s overall focus on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The company recently announced a new Head of CSR, Connie L. Lindsey, who is responsible for advancing Northern Trust’s global leadership on social and environmental issues. In September, the company was recognized by Newsweek in the magazine’s 2009 Green Rankings, citing Northern Trust for its record of owning and operating green buildings, as well as management team support for environmental measures.
LEED is an internationally recognized green building certification system, providing third-party verification that a building or community was designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts. For more information, see www.usgbc.org.