Let’s hear it for Chamblee! I ran across this press release on http://www.usgbc.org/News/PressReleaseDetails.aspx?ID=3670 I didn’t see any copyrights, so I am going to paste the whole thing. I hope that no one gets mad at this free advertising…
CHAMBLEE, GA (March 2008) – We are pleased to announce that the City of Chamblee (a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia) is now the “Greenest” city in Georgia and the Southeast. The Chamblee City Council voted unanimously to require all private development 20,000 square feet or greater to become LEED certified in addition to all future municipal buildings, regardless of size. Chamblee is the first city in the entire state of Georgia to mandate LEED certification for private development.
“This is a historic vote”, Councilman Mark Wedge said. “Chamblee is leading the way for effective legislation which will mandate Green building guidelines and help the environment – I am certain other cities in Georgia will follow our example”. The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), provides a suite of standards for environmentally sustainable construction. Since its inception in 1998, LEED has grown to encompass over 14,000 projects in 50 US States and 30 countries covering 1.062 billion square feet of development area.
Residents of Chamblee have been in support of mandating LEED. “Other places in the country have adopted LEED requirements and they’re already seeing the economic benefits of it”, Arthur Gibert said. “It’s pretty obvious it’ll make Chamblee a better place to put a business, and of course it will be a better place to raise a family”.
Mark Wedge, the Councilman who spear-headed this issue, believes requiring LEED certification on future projects will enhance the long term sustainability of Chamblee. “With China and India coming on-line requiring vast amounts of energy for their growing economies, oil prices will only continue to rise and our environment will continue to be strained. People are wanting Green construction where they live and work. Our environment is in trouble and we must lead by example in promoting the best use of development for the long term sustainability of the City of Chamblee. By reducing energy and water consumption via LEED, Chamblee is setting a great example for other cities in Georgia to follow. Our city is way ahead of the curve on this issue”.
You can read this article at http://www.usgbc.org/News/PressReleaseDetails.aspx?ID=3670