Whole Foods Market Takes Top Honor in A.R.E.’s 2014 Sustainability Awards

Las Vegas (March 19, 2014)—The Whole Foods Market in Detroit, Mich., won the highly coveted Sustainable Project of the Year at last night’s Design Awards presented by the Association for Retail Environments (A.R.E.).  The project, which also won a Grand Prize, meets green building goals while creating an instant connection with shoppers and emphasizing local relevance, natural foods, and responsible commerce. Among store features that impressed judges are 24 skylights, a white roof with high sustained reflectivity, and reclaimed pieces that evoke the city’s heritage.

“We all know Whole Foods has a great green ethic and does a fantastic job of education, but this is one of the best examples I've seen,” said judge Dee Spiro, LEED AP BD+C, of Bergmeyer Associates.

The only competition focused on sustainable retail design, the A.R.E. Sustainability Awards honors retail projects for outstanding green building achievement. Now in its sixth year, the competition draws entries from around the world as a division of the A.R.E. Design Awards. This year’s awards were held at Tuesday, March 18^th at the Four Seasons Hotel in Las Vegas to coincide with opening night of GlobalShop.

In addition to the Project of the Year/Grand Prize, A.R.E. awarded another Grand Prize, an Outstanding Merit, and a Special Recognition in the Sustainability division.

Pacific Collections at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, Calif., won the Grand Prize – Tenant Improvement Award for its 3 Green Globes expansion built on a synthetic fill that saved materials and avoided disruption to the aquarium’s marine life. Taking home the Outstanding Merit-Standalone Award was Harris Teeter, Charlotte, a renovated 64-year-old space with natural lighting, a green roof, and mosaics designed by local artists.

Special Recognition-Strategic Use of Resources was awarded to Green Zebra in Portland, Ore., for repurposing 95 percent of available onsite materials and features such as bicyclist accommodations, setting a goal of zero waste and selling products from local vendors.

The competition’s comprehensive criteria address innovation in design, integration, and benchmarking. Also judging this year’s entries were:

Bob DeGroff, LEED Green Associate, Miller Zell Inc.
Nancy Everhart, AIA, CDT, NCARB, LEED AP,,Little
Andrew Ramirez, LEED AP BD+C, Bishop Fixture & Millwork Inc. 
Jo Rossman, LEEP AP ID+C, A.R.E.
Richard Shelley, LEED AP, Fetzer Architectural Woodwork
Rick Troxel, CSI, Roseburg

For more information, visit: http://www.aredesignawards.com/sustain.cfm

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About A.R.E.

A.R.E. (the Association for Retail Environments) is a nonprofit trade association advancing the retail environments industry and our member companies. These international leaders include store fixture suppliers, retail design firms, suppliers of visual merchandising products, suppliers of materials and equipment for the industry and service providers such as 3PLs and installers. Through on-site, online, and on-target venues, A.R.E. connects retailers and brand marketers with the professionals who bring their brands to life.

A.R.E. is sponsor of GlobalShop, the annual industry trade show, and producer of Retail Design Collective, the annual industry showroom event in New York City. A.R.E.'s educational events for retailers and designers also include regional Shoptalks, while educational events for members include the annual Industry Summit.

A.R.E.’s magazine, Retail Environments, provides proprietary research and business information. A.R.E. connects members with buyers through its online, mobile and print directory known as Supplier|Connect. In social media, the association operates the industry's largest discussion forum.

For more information, log on to www.retailenvironments.org.