Vestas plans to move its North American sales and service headquarters into the historic Meier & Frank Depot Building in Portland’s Pearl District. The $66-million building retrofit will focus on meeting the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification. Built in 1928 , the Meier & Frank Depot Building, vacant since 2001 , will undergo a complete historic renovation by Gerding Edlen Development, one of the country’s largest developers of LEED-certified properties. Construction is expected to begin in October 2010. Vestas plans to occupy the space in early 2012. When redeveloped, the building will be 172 ,000 square feet including a 22 ,000 square-foot addition on the fifth floor with an eco-roof terrace and gardens. The retrofit also includes the installation of what is believed to be the largest roof-mounted solar array in Portland’s central business district. Working with its development team, the high-tech wind power systems manufacturer says it will maintain the integrity of the building’s historic façade, while including environmentally-friendly construction and design. Some of those features include a system that will collect rainwater for reuse in the building, raised-access flooring with under-floor mechanical ventilation, insulated exterior walls and thermally insulated operable windows to reduce energy use, and a central, multi-story atrium to provide natural light and to reduce energy use. Vestas will occupy a majority of the building with tenant and retail space available on the first floor. The building renovation team is led by Gerding Edlen Development, in association with GBD Architects, Glumac, KPFF, HHPR, Peter Meijer Architects, Skanska and Ankrom Moisan Architects. Vestas was recently ranked as one of the 10 greenest publicly traded companies in the world by Portfolio 21.
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