LEEDing the Way: Chattanooga area businesses pursue sound environmental practices

Donnie Hutcherson, left, and Ronelle Sellers discuss LEED features at the offices of Henderson, Hutcherson and McCullough on Market Street.

From a movie theater to a parking garage, three dozen businesses, schools or government properties in the Scenic City have locked down the U.S. Green Building Council's designation for being best-in-class at energy conservation and environmental design.

Chattanooga fares well in LEED designations, as compared to cities with similar population, says Christopher M. Gray, a spokesman for the U.S. Green Building Council. "We don't tend to see as much investment going into these kind of smaller-sized cites."

Tennessee is doing well, too. It ranks 17th among states for per-capita LEED space, at 1.238 certified gross square feet per resident. Georgia fares even better, placing 8th among the 50 states. Those are the best showings among Southern states. Wyoming (.041) and Idaho (.057) rank worst, and Illinois (3.309) and Colorado (3.145) rank best. Washington D.C. beats all of the states at 29.443.

Most investment for LEED certification is seen in government and school buildings, including higher education, Gray says. That's due, in part, to the documentation required to gain LEED certification and the favorable publicity that stems from being designated as a green business or building. But Gray says it's largely because smart energy use and smart interplay with the environment save money - which pleases taxpayers.

Chicago and New York rank highest among major cities in raw footage of LEED space followed by Houston and Washington D.C., which always duel for spots three and four, Gray says.

National certification is not the only avenue for environmental accolades and guidance toward sustainable practices. It's available at the local level, too.

Green|Spaces, the Chattanooga nonprofit organization whose mission is making people and businesses in the area better environmental stewards, launched its own, smaller version of LEED in early 2015. Known as Green|Light, the program works with businesses to help them create sustainable strategies and create better environments for their workers.

So far, The Crash Pad, which is LEED platinum certified, and the adjacent Flying Squirrel restaurant have earned the Green|Light designation. The program is particularly helpful to businesses that don't own the properties they occupy and so can't modify structures to go after LEED points, says Natalie Hostetler, Green|Light's program director. The program also gives businesses "a toolbox," including vetted local vendors, "so they can sustainably source materials," she says. "That's one part: making those connections."

Green|Spaces is working toward dispelling a misconception that sustainable practices translate to higher operational costs, Hostetler says. High-efficiency light bulbs are a simple example that proves the point.

Ruby Falls, which is pursuing Green|Light and recently won the Tennessee Hospitality and Tourism Association's Good Earth Keeping Award, historically used hundreds of incandescent bulbs in its cave but has replaced them with more efficient LED and CFL bulbs. The switch reduced electricity use, of course. But, more importantly, it extended the lives of the bulbs by more than 10 times, according to Hugh Morrow, Ruby Falls' president.

"Our maintenance is much easier and the cave has a better illumination for our guests," he says.

Being able to point to trends in local sustainability helps promote Chattanooga as a business destination, says Sybil Topel, vice president of communications for the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce. It matters enough for the Chamber to have teamed with Green|Spaces to create a sustainability website meant to be a local directory and resource on the subject: www.chattanoogachamber.com/sustainability.

"So many people do research on the Web before they even set foot in a place," Topel says. Content for the site can be contributed by local businesses that want to make their practices known, she says.

"Decision-makers are likely to pick the place that has a perceived lifestyle their employees are going to embrace," Topel says. In turn, good environmental practices and LEED certification are important, she says.

Chambliss Bahner & Stophel

Good timing allowed Chambliss Bahner & Stophel to recently move into its new location and earn a LEED gold designation in January.

A couple of years ago, the lease for the law firm's space at the downtown location it had occupied for three decades was ending. "We decided for various reasons it was time to update our office," says Dana Perry, one of the firm's owners. "Office design had really changed a lot."

Plus, Liberty Tower, the building for which Chambliss Bahner & Stophel is now an anchor tenant, was seeking LEED designation.

Cost savings played a significant role in pursuing the sustainability crown, but other benefits were not lost on the law firm's staff. "During the construction process we would sit in meetings and say, 'We are diverting all this stuff from the landfill to recycling,' " Perry recalls, noting that about 50 percent of throw-away materials were salvaged. "It just felt really good."

So did using healthful carpet and paint, she says. "It didn't cost any more to go with the LEED option. We just said, 'We want the paint that meets the LEED option, we want the carpet that does.' "

The firm can't put a number on its savings because all the tenants at its previous location paid for power as part of rent. At Liberty, electricity is measured individually. But Perry says she is certain Chambliss Bahner & Stophel has reduced its use. Not only are the light fixtures more efficient when they're on, they also have sensors that turn them off when no one is around. Plus natural light illuminates much of the space, thanks to many glass doors and walls. Bob Franklin of Franklin Architects designed the space.

"People can be sitting in the central part of the building and have a direct line of sight to Lookout Mountain," Perry says. Specifically, the law firm reports having nearly 40,000 square feet of window space fitted with solar-control, low-emissivity glass that improves solar and thermal performance.

The law firm, which occupies four-and-a-half floors, also reports that the move reduced the footprint for its staff of 160 by nine percent, largely because it cut back on paper, instead electronically storing files and library materials.

"Without hesitating I will tell you going through LEED certification means our office now saves money," Perry says.

Habitat for Humanity ReStore

Habitat for Humanity ReStore's former building wasn't air conditioned or heated, nor did it have running water, recalls Dennis Neal, the organization's local director of construction and land development. It's new building has all of that - and on an efficient scale. LEED certified in 2014, the new space on East Main Street uses almost half the energy that is typical of retail buildings, according to an EPB energy management survey.

Local architect Thomas Palmer designed the 11,000-square-foot space, which was already standing. Some of the elements incorporated included water-efficient landscaping, regional materials, low-VOC paint and recycled content.

The building's heating and ventilation unit (HVAC) was much of what helped earned the LEED status, Neal says. Window got changed out; now they are large and high in the structure, which allows heat to rise and move through them. "They open, and they draw the heat right out of the building," he says.

The site captures rainwater and uses it to water plants, which are native to the area and drought tolerant. There also are two electric chargers for cars in front of the store.

The Chattanooga location is Habitat for Humanity International's only LEED-certified ReStore, though the organization has some LEED-certified offices.

Henderson, Hutcherson & McCullough

Only part of Henderson, Hutcherson & McCullough's building on Market Street is LEED certified. That's just because the other part is designated historic by Cornerstones, and the accounting firm has to keep the space more or less intact to maintain the designation. Still, HHM installed solar panels on the historic area.

HHM went after the environmental label at a time when LEED designations starting to get a lot of buzz, helped along by the fact that some of the firm's real estate clients were pursuing it too, says Ronelle Sellers, HHM's director of marketing. "We had just started hearing about it." HHM earned gold designation in 2009.

Perhaps more compelling, managing partner Donnie Hutcherson, who is "for anything green," pushed for it, Sellers says. "He is all about the environment."

HHM reports that most of its furniture is reused, and, as expected, it has low-flush toilets and a heating and ventilation system that draws fresh air. It also used reclaimed wood and other resources to build. RiverStreet Architects handled the project.

As if to prove it's not taking itself too seriously despite its stewardship, the company came up with playful signage to talk up its standards. One example: "This carpet hails from Washington, D.C., where it once softened the paths of Federal agents. Today, it is sectioned in tiles If any part of the carpet needs repair, we won't have to replace the whole thing." Or this one for its dual-flush toilets: "Be green when no one is looking. Lift the lever up for a light flush and push the lever down for a heavier flush. Anything in between is between you and your conscience."

The certification has proved an educational tool for employees and visitors, Hutcherson says. HHM hasn't measured its cost savings since being certified, though he's sure its been "favorable," he says.

"Our purpose in pursuing the gold-level certification was to do what we felt was best for our company, employees and community; generating a return on our investment was not our objective."