Page 159 - The Green Building Bottom Line The Real Cost of Sustainable Building

138 CHAPTER 5

bottom lines—and they and their customers enjoy improved indoor air quality,
among other benefits.
In this chapter, Randy Peacock, Melaver’s head of Development and Construc-
tion Services, discusses the sustainable features of Abercorn Common, whose ten-
ants include a mix of national chains (Circuit City, Panera Bread, Home Goods,
Books-A-Million, and Michaels, among others) and local businesses (F. P. Wortley
Jewelers and The Riitz, an Aveda Salon, among others), the first LEED McDonald’s
restaurant in the United States, and a newer out-parcel addition called Shops 600
that has a green vegetated roof and solar hot water.
The redevelopment of Abercorn Common was a learn-as-you-go experience for
the company. Peacock begins with a general history of the center and considers the
overarching challenges the development team faced in making this an early LEED
project. Section one takes a more specific look at the project itself. Sections two
through four look at each of the three particular component parts of the develop-
ment—the in-line shopping center, the LEED McDonald’s out-parcel, and the bou-
tique Shops 600 out-parcel—and the particular green strategies associated with
each one. Section five considers the financial implications of being an early entrant
into green development. In the concluding section, Peacock considers lessons
learned, with an eye toward what the development team might have done differ-
ently. Charting new territory has pitfalls as well as benefits. “Do as we say, not as
we did,” a variation of the old saying, is an apt motto for this chapter, and
Peacock’s discussion provides a roadmap for other developers.

If buildings could talk, Abercorn Common could tell a lot of stories, stories about
values and innovation and long-term commitment to place. Take the M&M
Supermarket that was built as part of the original shopping center, Abercorn Plaza.
When the store was constructed in 1970, it had things no other grocery store in the
region had, such as a deli, a bakery, and a large wine and cheese specialty section. In
addition, the store included cutting-edge technology in the form of computer scanners
that were used to help manage the inventory through a just-in-time delivery system—
and remember, this was almost forty years ago.
About the time the Abercorn Plaza M&M Supermarket readied for its grand open-
ing, owners Norton and Betty Melaver signed an open letter to the city that was pub-
lished in the Savannah Morning News, supporting the then-recent federal decision to
integrate the local school system. “You might agree or disagree with the decision,” the
letter said, “but it’s the law of the land and the right thing to do.” As a result of this
letter, the grand opening of the store was hindered by an angry group of picketers try-
ing to stage a boycott of the store—an action that required going to court to enjoin the
picketers from continuing and potentially ruining the company. Prominent environ-