Top Stories   JULY-AUGUST 2010   Deutsche Bank, Partners Launch Green Building Retrofit Data Project The initiative will track economic impacts, energy savings and carbon emissions reductions of anticipated investments in multifamily building energy-efficiency retrofits in New York City. Full story   DOE Allocates $76M for Advanced Energy-Efficient Building Tech and Training The Federal allocation will support energy-efficient building technology projects and the development of training programs for commercial building equipment technicians, building operators, and energy auditors. Full story   Building Commissioning Firm Receives $9M in Series A Financing The company’s soft-as-service platform purports to cut annual energy spending up to 25 percent by comparing predicted energy and system efficiencies against real-time operations.  Full story ProLogis Report Gauges Energy Efficiency of European Warehouses The company’s research study notes that European legislative initiatives continue to drive change toward the use of sustainable properties with smaller carbon footprints. Full story Lafarge Bond Finances Green Cement Innovator The funding will accelerate Novacem’s development program to construct and operate a commercial plant to be co-located with an existing cement plant. Full story RREEF’s Leitner to Head Sustainability Real Estate Alliance Charles B. Leitner III, the global head of RREEF Alternative Investments, will assume the role of Chief Executive Officer of Greenprint, a worldwide alliance of real estate owners, investors and financial institutions committed to reducing carbon emissions across the global property industry. Full story Survey Indicates Healthcare Sector More Likely to Invest in Energy Efficiency Healthcare organizations are more likely to invest in energy efficiency for their facilities compared to others sectors across North America. Full story Craton Equity Partners Invests in GreenWave Realty                                         The $5 million commitment to the home energy management company is part of an $11 million equity round that includes several other strategic investors, including Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB). Full story Climate Change Capital Leads $9M funding of Nualight, Ltd The LED lighting company, based in Cork, Ireland, is active in the international retail sector, with a roster of European retail clients that includes Tesco, Migros and Rewe. Full story Huge Savings Seen in Calif. Commercial Building Energy Efficiency A study identifies commercial buildings as a stealth energy drain and huge untapped resource that could provide significant savings for California businesses and state government, and reduce the need to build new power plants. Full story   JUNE 2010 Pension Allocation to Shopping Center Trust Aided by Manager’s RPI Commitment Dutch pension fund and asset manager PGGM has invested around €75m in Standard Life Investments UK Shopping Centre Trust following an agreement in December 2009. Full Story   Fund Manager Completes Nevada's First LEED-Gold Office Building Retrofit The retrofit is the first portfolio project of the $100 million Thompson National Properties/Shangri-La Industries Green Building Fund. Full Story Large Fuel Cell to Power LEED Platinum Multifamily Tower in Connecticut The 400 kW fuel cell will provide nearly 100% of the building’s electric needs as well as provide thermal energy for its heating and hot water requirements. Full Story   California Law Has Potential to Boost Sustainability of Urban Areas Senate Bill 375 requires metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) to create and implement land use plans that use compact, coordinated, and efficient development patterns to reduce auto dependency. Full Story   Saint-Gobain to Build Second High-Efficiency PV Plant in Germany French building materials giant Saint- Gobain is building a new plant to produce photovoltaic (PV) modules to cover the roofs of residential, industrial and commercial buildings as well as solar plants. Full Story   Hospitals Can Make A Big Dent in Energy Use at Minimal Cost A new study shows how hospitals, which account for four percent of all energy consumed in the U.S., can achieve a 60 percent reduction in energy utility use by redesigning the way they use energy. Full Story Energy-Efficient Lighting to Save San Diego County Taxpayers up to $10 Million Annually 145,000 streetlights in the San Diego Gas and Electric service territory are eligible for upgrades with more energy-efficient technologies. Full Story   The Tower Companies Promotes David Borchardt to Chief Sustainability Officer Borchardt is responsible for making sure the firm’s sustainability goals are implemented in all future development and across an existing portfolio of 4.5 million square feet of commercial and residential space within the DC area. Full Story   MAY 2010 In Germany, IVG Raises $202 Million for Green Office Fund Europe’s third largest property fund manager has closed a real estate fund for sustainable buildings with four German and Austrian pension funds. Full story   Broad Investor Interest in Sustainability Limited by Scarce Data, Says DB Report Government regulation and tenant demand continue to exert strong pressure on the commercial real estate industry to become more sustainable, but barriers remain to wider adoption of green. Full story Opus West Bankruptcy Puts LEED Gold Property on the Market The company’s poor fortune includes defaulting on a trio of LEED-Gold certified Class-A office buildings the developer erected in San Diego. Full story Obama Administration Has $7B Poised for Green Buildings, Says Report In addition to funds available, loan guarantees and over 30 government programs, the report puts forth a dozen opportunities to green federal policy on multifamily and commercial buildings. Full story   Feds Grant $425 Million to 25 Communities for Green Retrofits The partnerships will support large-scale retrofits and make energy efficiency available to homeowners and businesses. Full story   Gottfried to Advise SCI on Green Building The co-founder of the U.S. Green Building Council is also heading up the U.S. Regenerative Network, a new group of established and venture-backed clean tech green-building product and service companies. Full story   Real Estate Directory Focused on Brownfield Development Taps Social Media The directory—launched by an affiliate of Environmental Data Resources—includes user-generated comments and ratings designed to tease out risk in supplier selection. Full story Enterprise Makes First Loan Through Transit-Oriented Development Fund The $15 million credit facility is focused on creating affordable housing with current and future access to high-frequency public transit. Full story   APRIL 2010   California Shops Large Portfolio of Sustainable Class-A Office Properties The 11-property lease-back deal may be the largest portfolio of green office buildings every put for the sale in the U.S. Full story New Study Identifies Top 25 U.S. Markets for Green Office Buildings The Green Building Opportunity Index is the first office market assessment tool to provide weighted comparisons of top U.S. office markets for both real estate fundamentals and green development considerations. Full story Greenwich Group Starts Advisory for Green Commercial Properties The investment bank aims to provide financial solutions to property owners and developers of sustainable buildings to meet their real estate capital requirements where conventional funding sources might not be the most competitive. Full story Massachusetts Taps EnerNoc for $10 Million Statewide Energy Efficiency Project The consultant will provide a comprehensive enterprise energy management system to reduce energy costs at more than 470 state-owned facilities. Full story GSA Invests $4 Billion in Green Construction Projects To transform federal buildings into higher performing, greener buildings, the agency is awarding construction projects to more than 500 companies by investing $4 billion in Recovery Act funds. Full story Marquee Brokerage Kicks Off Solar Energy Services Group CB Richards Ellis is partnering with Smart Energy Capital to offer a broad range of solar energy services, including solar power-purchase agreements, roof leases and solar project investment opportunities. Full story SF Launches Nation's Largest Property Assessed Clean Energy Program The $150 million program allows private property owners to finance water conservation, energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements through a voluntary property assessment. Full story     MARCH 2010    Model Green Construction Code for US and Beyond Launched The new code, which will reach all 50 states and 22,000 jurisdictions in the U.S., is expected to accelerate the construction of high-performance green buildings internationally. Full story UK Investors launch $525M Green Office Fund Manager Threadneedle Investment Funds aims to raise $150 million over the next 12 months and refurbish 50 commercial properties to environmentally sustainable standards over five years. Full story Consultancy Launches Advisory for Green Real Estate Investments Sustainable Options, the Atlanta, GA green-building consultant, is spearheading the new advisory group to assist owners and investors in evaluating Class-A office property deals suitable for green retrofits. Full story Bridges Sustainable Property Fund Backs Developer Castleoak The fund established a new development partnership with Castleoak to develop assisted-living facilities with an equity commitment of $7.5 million. Full story   UTC Power’s Fuel Cell Certified to Stringent California Emission Standards The certification will likely open the door to opportunities for real estate owners to reduce their environmental footprint and operating costs in California. Full story   Green Building Materials Firm CalStar Closes $15 Million Equity Round Venture firm Nth Power led the round that included new investors Westly Group  and Clearpoint Ventures, and continuing investors Foundation Capital and EnerTech Capital. Full story   GSA Makes Moves to Drive Sustainability Across Federal Buildings The Office of Federal High-Performance Green Buildings has moved from the Public Buildings Service to GSA’s Office of Government-wide Policy, and will hire a Chief Greening Officer. Full story Study Finds Data Center Expansion to Continue with Energy Efficiency a Priority The Digital Realty Trust study found that in the past three years, power metering at data centers has gone from being the exception to being utilized by a substantial majority of owners. Full story   FEBRUARY 2010   Canadian Mutual Fund Trust with Green Property Focus to Shop Institutional Market The debt and equity vehicle, which was approved by the British Columbia Securities Commission, hopes to raise $30M by the fall. Full story   Sarasin Green Fund Raises $58M since July 2009 Launch; Outperforms BMI The public equity green real estate fund focuses on sustainable REITs and other green-minded real estate operating companies. The fund recently added United Dominion, Inc., a U.S. multi-family REIT that scored high on the fund’s sustainability screens.  Full story   U.S. Lags In New Global Environmental Real Estate Index Three European pension funds commissioned an environmental survey of 688 listed and private real estate companies. The resulting index provides insight into the current state of environmental practices across real estate companies from different regions. Full story Zero-Net-Energy Resort Project Seeks Debt Buyer A financial firm and a development partner are looking to swap the debt on a 557-acre waterfront property with full entitlements from a distressed regional lender. Full story California Enacts Nation’s First Statewide Green Building Code Property owners who comply will be able to promote their buildings as meeting sustainability standards without having to use costly third-party certification systems. Full story   Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Station Network to Aid Property Owners British Columbia will have North America’s first real estate connected network of charging stations for electric and hybrid vehicles. Full story   New Whole Foods Store First in Calif. to Generate Bulk of Power with Fuel Cell The fuel cell system will generate 90 percent of the store's electricity needs and its byproduct thermal energy will be used for store heating, cooling and refrigeration for an overall efficiency of approximately 60 percent, nearly twice the efficiency of the U.S. electrical grid. Full story IAPMO Releases Green Plumbing and Mechanical Code Supplement The document is designed to make it easier for developers to recycle and reclaim gray water and rainwater in new construction projects. Full story     JANUARY 2010 Developer Closes $40M Round of Private Equity Green Fund The limited partners are Taft-Hartley pension funds, which largely cover workers in metro areas. Full story   Low-Carbon Investor to Develop World’s Greenest Parking Facility The firm has been acquiring resources in pursuit of a consulting and investment strategy, targeting real estate and other green businesses. Full story   U.S. Bank Leads Syndication of $90M Green Condo Loan The secured financing will enable a veteran Seattle developer to move forward on a hotel and condo development for up to two years. Full story Foundation Funds Responsible Property Investment Center The $200,000 grant will help the center develop an RPI Index. Full story Ceres Report Highlights Efficiency’s Importance for Real Estate Investing and Climate Change There are untapped reserves of efficiency gains buried in many real estate holdings, says the report. Full story California Agency Denies Permit to Top Eco Resort The commission ignored a Superior Court order to rehear the revised plan, seeking instead to set aside the 39-acre beachfront site as open space. Full story European Green City Index A research firm evaluated the 30 cities in eight categories: CO2 emissions; energy; buildings; transportation; water; air quality; waste and land use; and environmental governance. Full story