After granting partial summary judgment to the plaintiffs last year, the District of New Mexico has ruled on a fresh set of summary judgment motions and effectively enjoined the City of Albuquerque from implementing amendments to its Energy Conservation Code.
Tag Archives | LEED
In Toronto, Ontario Municipal Board Rejects Request for LEED-Based Project Variance
The proposed design for a 3-story home in the Kingsway section of Toronto does not qualify for a variance based on the project’s proposed LEED certification.
The Top 5 Legal Issues in Green Real Estate: 2010
We take a look back at the five most important legal issues (plus a special bonus issue!) that we discussed during 2010 here at GRELJ before moving forward into what promises to be just as wild a ride for green design, construction, and real estate legal issues in 2011.
Breaking: Henry Gifford Leads Class Action Lawsuit Against USGBC in Southern District of New York
A group of plaintiffs led by Henry Gifford has filed a class action lawsuit against USGBC in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
District of New Mexico Rules on Plaintiffs’ Motion for Summary Judgment in AHRI et al. v. City of Albuquerque
United States District Court Judge Martha Vazquez has ruled on a motion for summary judgment filed by the plaintiffs back in September of 2009 that certain portions of Albuquerque’s Energy Conservation Code are preempted by federal legislation.
Study: Lack of FSC-Certified Wood Products Creating Green Construction “Bottleneck” in New York
A recent study published in the Forest Products Journal identifies a lack of FSC-certified wood products as creating a green construction “bottleneck,” and calls on USGBC to open up its MR-7 Certified Wood credit to alternative forest certification regimes.
Fireman’s Fund Releases “Next Generation” Green Building Property Insurance Policy Endorsement
Just before the July 4 holiday, Fireman’s Fund, which launched the green building property insurance market back in 2006, released what it is calling its “next generation” of green building policy endorsements.
Copyright Concerns Could KO Proposed Delaware Green Building Legislation
Copyright concerns over green building amendments to Newark, Delaware’s building codes suggest some interesting questions about sovereign immunity and additional legal considerations for policymakers who may incorporate LEED into legislation.
Breaking: USGBC Upholds LEED Gold Certification of Northland Pines High School
USGBC has denied the appeal which challenged the LEED Gold certification awarded to the Northland Pines High School in Eagle River, Wisconsin.
Friday Afternoon Read: New York Observer’s Li on “The Eternal Real Estate Challenge”
Much of what Li discusses — the various different ways in which buildings and individuals can and cannot control energy consumption; why New Yorkers pay so much per capita for energy; the basic economic and logistical realities behind how our energy/electrical systems function — is stuff that we’ve gone over in piecemeal in various posts at gbNYC. But Li does an admirable job of bringing it all together, and of outlining one of the bigger challenges in green development. That energy issues are kind of inevitably among the more boring challenges in the field — for raw, visceral excitement, they can’t hold a candle to insulation — makes it all the more impressive that Li’s piece is a pretty enjoyable read.
