SANTA MONICA, CALIF.—Shore Hotel opened last month on Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica, just steps from the Santa Monica Pier, Third Street Promenade, and the city’s popular beaches and shopping districts. Shore Hotel is the newest addition to the coastline—a Silver LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified property that offers eco-friendly accommodations. Independently owned and operated by the Farzam family, Gensler Architecture conceived the 164-room hotel’s modern California exterior and interior design. The open-air, U-shaped design of Shore Hotel showcases an outdoor pool and patio, distinctive, steel trellis and three-tier glass sky bridge. Amenities on property include a...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The first annual NEWH Sustainable Design and Development Conference and Tradeshow will be held on December 9 at the Capitol Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. This tradeshow will bring together innovative, sustainable leaders, ideas, products, design and tangible business results. NEWH invites all members of the design and development community, hospitality industry, event professionals and sustainable partners who are looking to gain further insight and to promote and build strong business relationships to attend this new industry show. The trade show and conference will be a one-day event and will conclude with a cocktail reception on the show floor....

TORONTO—Hunter Douglas Contract's GreenScreen Revive fabric received Cradle to Cradle Certification at the Silver level from MBDC. The high-performance roller shade fabric is made with PVC-free polyester using 89 percent recycled Repreve fibers. Each yard of GreenScreen Revive fabric uses 11 post-consumer bottles. To earn Cradle to Cradle certification, GreenScreen Revive had to possess the followingcharacteristics: • Material health: safe and healthy for humans and environment.• Material reutilization: material contains recycled and recyclable content.• Renewable energy use: commitment to use solar, wind, geothermal, or other renewablesources of energy during the manufacturing process.• Water stewardship: ensure clean water leaves the factory after...

TORONTO—In an effort to advance far-reaching strategies for energy efficiency and fossil fuel independence in new and operational buildings, the International Living Future Institute unveiled the Net Zero Energy Building Certification program. The program is linked to the Living Building Challenge, widely considered to be the world’s most stringent and progressive green building program. As with the Living Building Challenge, certification is based on actual performance rather than modeled outcomes. Buildings must be operational for at least 12 consecutive months prior to evaluation. “In the next two decades, we are looking at the disappearance of cheap oil, a scarcity of...

TORONTO—Interface, Inc. announced that the company is on track to complete environmental product declarations (EPDs) for 90 percent of its total products, measured by production volume, by the end of 2011. The update comes as part of Interface’s pledge to obtain EPDs on all products globally in 2012, demonstrating the organization’s commitment to product transparency. “With the multitude of labels and claims in the marketplace, only EPDs offer full transparency and allow customers to evaluate products based upon verified facts,” said Dan Hendrix, president and CEO of Interface, Inc. “Adopting EPDs is one way we are responding to confusion in...

NEW YORK—Tai Ping, a multinational manufacturer of woven Axminster carpet and carpet tiles, announced that it has received the highest ratings from NSF 140. The first multi-attribute American National Standards Institute (ANSI) approved measure for environmentally preferable materials in the building industry; NSF 140 is the only recognized trademark in the industry with respect to environmental responsibility. Tai Ping continues to work closely with NSF as part of its global sustainability initiative, Tai Ping Toward Sustainability. Last year, Tai Ping’s woven Axminster became the very first wool carpet to achieve Silver certification. This year, the company excelled further, garnering Gold...

PLANO, TEXAS—Glass Recycled, a manufacturer of environmentally-friendly products that serve the construction and interior design industry, announces hundreds of new color combinations that are now available for use in their recycled glass countertops, walls, flooring and décor items. GlassSLAB is the company’s premier product. Made from recycled glass and epoxy in a terrazzo-like manufacturing process, GlassSlab can be used in kitchens, bathrooms, bars and in other countertop applications. Offering the durability of granite, GlassSLAB’s patented process brings the added benefit of nearly limitless color combinations. Whereas granite users may only select from what nature provides and is currently being mined,...

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.—The Las Vegas community of Summerlin is now the home of Nevada’s newest LEED certified hotel. Designed to be “green from the ground up,” Element hotels blend eco-inspired smart design, bright, open spaces, and flowing layouts in guestrooms. Element serves as Starwood’s green innovation lab, where sustainable practices are tested before migrating to other brands. With Element Las Vegas Summerlin’s certification, six Element hotels in North America now boast a LEED designation. Element, from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., made history in 2008 by becoming the first major hotel brand to mandate that all its properties pursue...

LAS VEGAS—MGM Grand has revealed designs for its new rooms and suites. Underway this week, the $160 million remodel includes all 3,570 guestrooms and 642 suites in the hotel’s main tower and is expected to conclude by September 2012. The initial set of redesigned rooms will be complete by the end of November 2011. “Our new rooms complement MGM Grand’s incredible collection of accommodations,” said Scott Sibella, president and COO for MGM Grand. “This is one of many exciting announcements on the horizon, all of which will solidify MGM Grand’s position not only as an entertainment destination, but as a...

TORONTO—BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of GreenSpec and Environmental Building News, announced the Top 10 Green Building Products for 2012. This tenth annual award, announced at the U.S. Green Building Council’s Greenbuild Conference in Toronto, recognizes the building products representing important green building innovations for the year ahead. “There are more ‘green’ building products than ever, but not all of them address a real need—or worse, some of them may create new problems down the road,” says BuildingGreen founder and GreenSpec executive editor Alex Wilson. “In selecting this year’s Top 10 products, we looked for companies that solved pressing needs in energy...