Hines Announces U.S. Bank Plaza Earns LEED Gold Certification

By Gabriel Circiog, Associate Editor

Hines recently announced that U.S. Bank Plaza in Minneapolis has received LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council under the Existing Buildings Rating System.

Located in the heart of the city’s Central Business District, the Class A office towers were designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. The 22- and 40-story towers feature 1.3 million rentable square feet and were completed in 1981.

Among the numerous green features implemented at U.S. Bank Plaza are energy-efficient lighting with reduced mercury content, the use of low-flow plumbing fixtures and a comprehensive recycling and composting program. Hines is also offering its Green Office for Tenants program, which helps in giving tenants options to reduce their carbon footprint.

“U.S. Bank Plaza achieving LEED Gold demonstrates our commitment to the environment, our tenants and the community. Energy savings, equipment efficiencies, water conservation and recycling programs directly benefit the tenants in terms of lower operating costs,” said Hines Managing Director Bill Chopp.

Apart from earning the LEED Gold certification, U.S. Bank Plaza has also earned the Energy Star label every year since 2001. Compared with the average U.S. office building, the building is 54 percent more energy efficient, and has a current rating of 95.

Hines Global Sustainability Officer Gary Holtzer added, “By achieving LEED certification at U.S. Bank Plaza, the local project team demonstrates to our owners, tenants, prospective tenants and the community that this property is being managed to the highest standards of excellence.”

The building’s tenants — which include CliftonLarsonAllen, Ernst & Young, Fredrikson & Byron, Grant Thornton, Henson & Efron and U. S. Bank — also contributed to the certification by tracking green purchases, increasing recycling efforts and participating in transportation and comfort surveys.