City of Saint Paul Supported Building Projects Green Up
The St. Paul City Council has adopted a resolution that requires any new building project that uses $200,000 worth of city or Housing and Redevelopment incentives to follow sustainability guidelines. Builders would have the opportunity to choose from several types of environmentally-friendly standards with the goal of reducing costs, increasing energy efficiency and cutting carbon emissions.
Among the requirements:
• Three-quarters of solid waste from construction and demolition must be recycled.• Landscaping must use 50% less water than traditional developments.
• Energy use information must be recorded and submitted to the state.
A group comprising representatives from businesses, government, nonprofits and other stakeholders spent the past two years crafting the building policy, said Anne Hunt, environmental policy director for Mayor Chris Coleman.
"This has been a long time coming," said Council Member Russ Stark. "The next frontier is existing buildings."
Nobody spoke in opposition during the public hearing held this week in Saint Paul.
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