Green can be a city's identity

Pittsburgh—Determined to reinvent itself as a small, tight-knit community with big-city amenities, Pittsburgh was early to adopt sustainability as a foundation for progressive growth. Needless to say, hotels in the area have followed suit.

Pittsburgh’s green movement got its unofficial kickstart when leaders built a convention center—anchoring downtown along the bank of the Allegheny River—that embodies the spirit of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The David L. Lawrence Convention Center received LEED-Gold status in 2003 and immediately began attracting development, meeting groups and tourism business interested in sustainability. Later in 2003, the convention center was home to the second annual Greenbuild, and, most notably, the G-20 Summit was held there in 2009.

The city has taken countless steps toward a sustainable future outside the convention center. Old industrial buildings along the city’s three rivers, mostly former steel mills, have been rehabbed and turned into condominiums or office space. A walking and biking path connects Pittsburgh’s most popular attractions and, as soon as a 2-mile stretch in front of the convention center is complete, will connect Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C.

The city currently ranks 10th in the nation with the most LEED-certified buildings (49). There are 114 more buildings registered to become LEED-certified throughout the city, said Holly Childs, executive director for the Green Building Alliance, an affiliate of the U.S. Green Buildings Council that oversees 28 counties in the Western Pennsylvania region.

"We really focus on transformative projects," Childs said. "There are a lot of architects and engineers that can do LEED-certified buildings and act in that respect. What we try to do is help the projects that are going to be first of their kind or really change the market, to really push green in a market where it hasn't been pushed before."

Hotels in the area have fallen in line. At the Westin Convention Center, a keycard energy saver program installed in 2003 controls lighting and the HVAC unit. The hotel recently installed energy-efficient laundry machines that recycle 80 percent of the water used and have partnered with a local taxi service, Classy Cab, which has converted its fleet to Hydrogen-powered vehicles. Also, members of the Starwood Preferred Guest program earn 500 points per night for participating in a green program outlined by the hotel.

“With the keycard and the laundry systems, we were ahead of the game,” said Tom Martini, GM.

Fairmont Pittsburgh, owned by PNC Financial Services Group and the city’s first luxury property, opened in March and expects a LEED-Gold designation later this year.

In a city known for its three rivers, water conservation is clearly a high priority at the Fairmont. One example: Guests will find large, empty glass bottles in the minibar and are instructed to take them down the hall to fill up with recycled, filtered water. Fairmont will save about 930,000 gallons of water annually. Also:

• Guestrooms are served by dedicated outdoor air units that supply 100 percent outside air.
• No vinyl wallcoverings are used in the hotel.
• All the guestroom furniture (excluding mirrors and accessories) is produced within 500 miles of Pittsburgh.
• All of the wood veneers in the guestroom are from American species of wood.
• 100 percent of the artwork displayed throughout the hotel is designed by Pittsburgh artists.
• Artifacts that were excavated from the building site are on display throughout the hotel.