Press Release

Office of RUMI Group LLC
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — August 2006
Contact:  Gina Jackman, 408-691-2463

McKee Green Plaza: City of San Jose's First Planned Green Retail Professional Building Slated to Receive LEED Certification.

SAN JOSE—The groundbreaking of McKee "Green" Plaza this month marks the official launch of the 2-story retail and professional "green" building on San Jose's flourishing eastside. KAL Construction & Design is excited to be leading the effort to design and build one of the most environmentally friendly retail buildings in the city. The project is scheduled to open in early 2007, and according to the building's owners—RUMI Group LLC—will endeavor to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), a coalition of building industry leaders working to promote environmentally healthy places to live and work.

Achieving LEED Certification would a first for any retail development in San Jose. "McKee Green Plaza will be incorporating many sustainable design features that will make it one of the "greenest" buildings in San Jose. The City is very supportive of green building efforts and encourages more developers to build green," said Mike Foster, the Green Building coordinator for the City of San Jose.

East San Jose Councilmember, Nora Campos said, "McKee Green Plaza is a pioneer for innovation and investment. This unique project delivers new retail and commercial office space designed exclusively with the environment in mind."

McKee Green Plaza's 22,780 square-foot "green building" will offer its tenants and customers a variety of environmentally friendly amenities ranging from high Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) HVAC equipment, solar control awnings, interior light shelves, tubular skylights, low-E windows with daylighting photosensors and cool roof installation.

"The energy efficient features in this project will add approximately $200,000 to the project cost but should pay for themselves within five years," adds Pat Bailey, Project Engineer and Vice President of Green Building Studio, Inc. whose engineering analysis and software tools assisted in the design of McKee Green Plaza.

According to Joanne Cromosini, Senior Project Manager of Customer Energy Efficiency at Pacific Gas & Electric Company, the McKee Green Plaza project is using the preferred method of Whole Building in the Savings By Design Incentive program. This approach enables the design team to consider integrated, optimized energy efficiency solutions, which lead to more informed design decisions based on comprehensive information. Continues Cromosini, "In the McKee Green Plaza project, there were over 45 energy efficient design alternatives that were identified.If implemented, this integration of systems (which includes HVAC, energy efficient lighting, daylighting with sensors, efficient insulation, Low-e glazing on the windows) should produce a building that offers greater health, comfort, and productivity for its occupants."

 

"The owners and design team for the McKee Green Plaza project are to be commended for moving forward with a project that has the potential to save their future tenants 30-40% on their energy bills, incorporates natural light in every space and represents a case study for how energy efficiency and renewable energy can be integrated into new buildings.  While many people talk about saving energy, this project 'walks the walk'," adds Bailey.

 

 

About LEED: LEED provides a national standard for what constitutes a green building. LEED provides a complete framework for assessing building performance and meeting sustainability goals. Evaluation categories include sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation and design.