Page 173 - The Green Building Bottom Line The Real Cost of Sustainable Building

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down, concentrating the light and allowing the use of five foot-candle illumination,
rather than the more conventional ten foot candles. No lights shine beyond the prop-
erty lines. The strategy reduces light pollution and energy usage, while also reducing
the common area maintenance bills to our tenants.
Our buildings also provide benefits that don’t directly contribute to our tenants’ bot-
tom lines but do increase their customers’ comfort and well being. One benefit is the
improved indoor air quality that comes from the use of low volatile organic compound
(VOC) paints, sealers, and adhesives. Thanks to market demands and greater avail-
ability, it doesn’t cost more to use low VOC products, you simply have to specify them
on the building plans. The well-documented benefits to building occupants from
improved indoor air quality include increased worker productivity, less absenteeism,
and greater comfort.
Beyond the focus on our tenants is the focus on our general community. Originally,
we allocated a space in the shopping center for an education center, to inform shop-
pers and the general citizenry about sustainable products and technologies. Ultimately,
we nixed that idea since it was too expensive to construct, but also because we recog-
nized that the entire center (and not just a stand-alone educational center) would be the

Figure 5.3 Map used for self-guided walking tours.