Destiny USA's Green Vision
	Shorenstein Cuts Energy Costs Throughout its Portfolio
	American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy Releases Annual Scorecard

Destiny USA isn’t only the name of the project that’s on track to become the largest LEED Gold-certified retail building in the country and the first to boast only LEED Gold-certified tenants, it might also be a metaphor for the evolution of the American shopping mall.

Or so Pyramid Cos. developer Robert J. Congel hopes. When Destiny USA opens in Syracuse, N.Y. in spring 2012, it will replace the 21-year-old Carousel Center mall and the former adjoining “Oil City,” a 120-acre oil tank wasteland and scrap yard and longtime local eyesore, which Congel remediated in partnership with the City of Syracuse.

Congel, a Syracuse native and founder of Pyramid Cos., which owns 17 malls in the Syracuse area, including Carousel Center, has undertaken Destiny USA as his company’s premier green project following a personal interest in green building that began with a conference held in his home in 2002, says Destiny USA executive Sara Wallace.

According to David Aitken, Destiny USA executive in charge of development, Congel initiated the project because having grown up near Oil City “makes him very passionate about developing an environmentally sustainable and energy-efficient project” and one that promotes regional economic development.

Is implementing energy-efficiency practices worth the effort when the portfolio is spread out across the country?

Shorenstein Properties thinks so. A privately owned company headquartered in San Francisco, Shorenstein is one of the oldest real estate companies in the U.S., with a national portfolio of 18.5 million sq. ft., valued at $6.2 billion, and a reputation for innovation. A portfolio-wide campaign to reduce energy consumption saved the company $1.7 million in energy costs in 2010.

In addition, Shorenstein Realty Services, the property management arm of Shorenstein Properties, recently launched the first phase of a targeted energy conservation education program, aimed at its thousands of tenants across the country, by conducting an energy awareness road show at several of its buildings.

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) released its annual 50-state Energy Efficiency Scorecard on October 20.

The ACCEE ranking covers all 50 states, with special attention paid to the top 10 states, the 10 states most in need of improvement and the five states showing the biggest positive movement.

Other names in green news include WSP Flack + Kurtz, the Gas Technology Institute, CBRE and the Appraisal Institute.