Minnesota expected to adopt building code that would cut energy use by 80%

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is expected to soon sign a bill that would change the state’s commercial building code so that new structures would use 80% less energy when compared to a 2004 baseline standard.

The legislation aims for full implementation of the new code by 2036. The bill had been debated for several years before clean energy groups, unions, utilities, and industry representatives coalesced to support it this legislative session.

Minnesota’s commercial code covers larger multifamily projects but not single-family homes or smaller residential properties. Upgrading commercial energy codes is expected to unlock federal aid for state energy efficiency initiatives.

The legislature is also considering numerous climate and clean energy proposals that include major investments in weatherization, public transit, and electric vehicle incentives.

In Denver, Mortenson, a Colorado-based builder, developer, and engineering services provider, along with joint venture partner Pinnacle Partners, has broken ground on Revival on Platte, a multifamily housing project. The 234,156-sf development will feature 200 studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom apartments on eight floors, with two levels of parking.

Codes and Standards | May 1, 2023

Hurricane Ian aftermath expected to prompt building code reform in Florida

Hurricane Ian struck the Southwest Florida coastline last fall with winds exceeding 150 mph, flooding cities, and devastating structures across the state. A construction risk management expert believes the projected economic damage, as high as $75 billion, will prompt the state to beef up building codes and reform land use rules.

| Apr 28, 2023

$1 billion mixed-use multifamily development will add 1,200 units to South Florida market

A giant $1 billion residential project, The District in Davie, will bring 1.6 million sf of new Class A residential apartments to the hot South Florida market. Located near Ft. Lauderdale and greater Miami, the development will include 36,000 sf of restaurants and retail space. The development will also provide 1.1 million sf of access controlled onsite parking with 2,650 parking spaces.

Mixed-Use | Apr 27, 2023

New Jersey turns a brownfield site into Steel Tech, a 3.3-acre mixed-use development

In Jersey City, N.J., a 3.3-acre redevelopment project called Steel Tech will turn a brownfield site into a mixed-use residential high-rise building, a community center, two public plazas, and a business incubator facility. Steel Tech received site plan approval in recent weeks.

Specifying Materials in Multifamily Housing Projects, HorizonTV

Multifamily Housing | Apr 27, 2023

Watch: Specifying materials in multifamily housing projects

A trio of multifamily housing experts discusses trends in materials in their latest developments. Topics include the need to balance aesthetics and durability, the advantages of textured materials, and the benefits of biophilia.

Concrete Technology | Apr 24, 2023

A housing complex outside Paris is touted as the world’s first fully recycled concrete building

Outside Paris, Holcim, a Swiss-based provider of innovative and sustainable building solutions, and Seqens, a social housing provider in France, are partnering to build Recygénie—a 220-unit housing complex, including 70 social housing units. Holcim is calling the project the world’s first fully recycled concrete building.

Multifamily Housing | Apr 21, 2023

Arlington County, Va., eliminates single-family-only zoning

Arlington County, a Washington, D.C., community that took shape in the 1950s, when single-family homes were the rule in suburbia, recently became one of the first locations on the East Coast to eliminate single-family-only zoning.

Green | Apr 21, 2023

Top 10 green building projects for 2023

The Harvard University Science and Engineering Complex in Boston and the Westwood Hills Nature Center in St. Louis are among the AIA COTE Top Ten Awards honorees for 2023.