Gazit-Globe Ltd. (TASE: GLOB) subsidiary First Capital Realty Inc. (TSX:FCR) has opened Toronto's first ecofriendly mall that complies with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) criteria, the Morningside Crossing Shopping Center.
The LEED Green Building Rating system of the US Green Building Council has become a benchmark of environmental construction in the US.
In an interview with "Globes" a year ago, FCR president and CEO Dori Segal said, "Environmental construction has several meanings. Use of non-polluting building materials, very efficient energy systems, such as the use of natural lighting, air conditioning, and waste treatment to separate materials for recycling, and so forth. It also refers to gardening and irrigation, such as the use of recycled water and ensuring that water for irrigating gardens and green spaces percolates into underground tanks for reuse."
FCR also said that, in May 2006, it became the first shopping center developer in Canada to announce that all of its new development projects would be constructed to LEED standards and principles. In 2008, FCR has invested more than $160 million in 33 properties developed to LEED standards in Canada, including new shopping centers, redevelopment properties, and expansion space.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 28, 2008
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