The Garage, the $52 million multi-family mixed-use development in New Orleans recently completed by Wisznia|Architecture+Development, announced last month that the project has been awarded LEED Certification.  LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), developed by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the most widely used green building rating system in the world and an international symbol of excellence in the built environment.  LEED-certified buildings are helping to make the world more sustainable through a stringent process of meeting and/or exceeding certain design criteria, construction tolerances, and by establishing operations and practices that improve environmental and human health. 

The Garage is designed to reduce energy consumption by 50% compared to similar buildings. The Garage achieved LEED certification for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions in areas including sustainable site development (e.g. storm water retention), potable water savings, energy efficiency, materials selections and indoor environmental quality. Green buildings allow residents to live more sustainably and give people inside them a healthier, more comfortable space in which to live.  

“We encourage and promote an environmentally sensitive life-style for our residents.  One example that makes The Garage unique in the Greater New Orleans multi-family marketplace is that we have installed eight (8) EV (electric vehicle) charging stations with the goal to ultimately provide EV charging for every parking space”, stated Daniel Weiner, Project Architect of The Garage.  

“Achieving LEED certification is more than just implementing sustainable practices.  It represents a commitment to making the world a better place and influencing others to do it better,” said Mahesh Ramanujum, president and CEO, USGBC. “Given the extraordinary importance of climate protection and the central role buildings play in that effort, The Garage is creating a path forward through their LEED certification.”  

Certification is proof that buildings are going above and beyond to ensure that space is constructed and operated to the highest level of sustainability.  “Our commitment to the environment was steadfast as we pursued LEED certification for The Garage; countless design decisions were made through an eco-friendly lens as this was essential to achieve LEED certification”, stated Marcel Wisznia.  “It’s ironic that in a development project that is so responsive to the automobile, there are more bicycle racks than parking spaces and we promote the neighborhood’s walkability and access to public transit as much as the vehicular elevators.”  Dan Weiner continues, “The New Orleans Streetcar is also an electric vehicle.”

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