Last updated on June 6th, 2016 at 04:42 pm
The American Institute of Architects (AIA) and its Committee on the Environment (COTE) has selected H-E-B at Mueller in Austin, Texas, as one of the top 10 examples of sustainable architecture and ecological design projects that protect and enhance the environment.
H-E-B is the first grocery store to receive a national AIA COTE Top Ten Award.
“Following two years of collaboration with Lake Flato Architects, Selser Schaefer Architects and other stakeholders, we were able to deliver a store that reimagines what is possible for energy, water, and overall efficiency with an innovative approach that meets the needs of the community it serves,” said Bill Triplett, H-E-B’s SVP of strategic design. “We are beyond delighted that the greenest store H-E-B has ever designed, built and operated is included on this prestigious list and is recognized with this distinct honor.”
The COTE Top Ten Awards program, now in its 20th year, is the profession’s most rigorous recognition program for sustainable design excellence. The program celebrates projects that are the result of a thoroughly integrated approach to architecture, natural systems and technology. Further, by conducting an in-depth study of nearly 200 COTE Top Ten Award winning projects encompassing almost 20 years in the recently released report, Lessons from the Leading Edge, it was determined that design projects recognized through this program are outpacing the industry by virtually every standard of performance.
“Lake Flato is proud to be a partner with such a forward-thinking organization. H-E-B is the first grocery store to receive a national AIA COTE Top Ten Award, the highest honor in sustainable design. For the Mueller store to receive recognition as one of the top ten most sustainable buildings in the country is a testament to H-E-B’s achievements in environmental sustainability and continued design innovation,” said David Lake, FAIA partner and founder of Lake Flato.
H-E-B at Mueller is an 83,587-s.f. retail store and fresh food market with a pharmacy, café and community meeting space. The store is designated a LEED Gold certification and Austin Energy Green Building 4-Star sustainability certification. Located in the Mueller neighborhood, a mixed-use urban village in Austin, the store is located three miles from downtown and two miles from the University of Texas, with access to public transportation, open space and bike routes. While grocery stores and foodservice outlets use more energy per square foot than any other commercial building sector and are more than twice as energy-intensive as office buildings and schools, H-E-B at Mueller slashed its energy use by 64 percent compared to the grocery store national median while achieving a better customer environment.
H-E-B at Mueller joins the following Top Ten distinguished projects: Biosciences Research Building (BRB), Galway, Ireland; Center for Sustainable Landscapes (CSL), Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Exploratorium at Pier 15, San Francisco, California; Jacobs Institute for Design Innovation, Berkeley, California; Rene Cazenave Apartments, San Francisco, California; The Dixon Water Foundation Josey Pavilion, Decatur, Texas; The J. Craig Venter Institute, San Diego, California; University of Wyoming Visual Arts Facility, Laramie, Wyoming; and West Branch of the Berkeley Public Library; Berkeley, California. The projects were honored at a ceremony May 19 during the 2016 AIA Convention in Philadelphia.
