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October 20, 2008 by John Cottone
Filed under Building Green, Sustainability
City Center, Las Vegas
Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas, the ever-morphing city typically known for consumption and excess. Now, the city is taking the lead in green development with one of the world’s largest environmentally-sustainable urban communities.
CityCenter, the latest addition to the Strip, is a cutting-edge destination, with an urban core that intends to blend world-class residential, hospitality, retail, gaming and entertainment elements into a synergistic hub of distinctive character. The $8 billion venture between the MGM Mirage and Dubai World is located between Bellagio and Monte Carlo, and aims for LEED certification.
Here are their eco-friendly features, according to City Center’s website:
Conserving Water
CityCenter is located in a beautiful desert valley. Our architects and planners have integrated water conservation measures throughout the community. From beautiful, specially-designed low-flow bathroom fixtures to a highly efficient irrigation system, CityCenter’s design conserves water, a precious resource.Preserving Indoor Environmental Quality
Bold new construction strategies will ensure that the air you breathe at CityCenter is clean and fresh. Construction crews are implementing innovative new techniques to minimize pollutants in the air conditioning system. Materials utilized during facility construction have been chosen to minimize emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). These strategies will ensure the health and comfort of our guests and visitors.Conserving Energy
CityCenter’s dramatic design and exciting amenities utilize natural light and innovative strategies to conserve power… and much of the power that is consumed at CityCenter will be generated on-site. CityCenter’s cogeneration solution will utilize the excess heat generated by the on-site power plant to heat water for use by guests. This reduces demand on the power grid and benefits the entire community.
I think it’s great for the sprawling desert city to embrace urban revival. Walkable neighborhoods and business districts add vibrancy to daily living, reduce dependency on automobiles, and create energy and consumption efficiencies as compared to suburbia.
For your viewing pleasure, here are additional architectural concept drawings for City Center:
Line-dry your clothes instead of using your drying machine this summer. Your clothes will last longer, and you'll save energy and money! Extra bonus for using the cold-water setting when running the washing machine.
It’s great to see the trend towards LEED certification evolve. I work in the commercial real estate industry and ‘green’ is all over the place and is generally recognized as a must for all new buildings. In fact, a lot of what I am seeing is that green buildings are retaining tenants better than non-green buildings as we move through this down cycle.
Isn’t it ironic that in a city of excess there is a focus on green building? Nonetheless, any effort towards green and LEED certification in a prominent and visible city is welcomed. I’ve seen the city center construction in process for a long time so its great to see its complete. If they do achieve LEED certification, I will make sure to stay here during the next seminar.
They’re currently accepting meetings and conferences for 2010, no word yet on timing individual hotel rooms.