Is LEED losing its appeal or is the difficulty of the new LEED version 4 starting to be reflected in the overall LEED numbers? Nationally, all measures of LEED growth were down in 2017. Houston slowed down even more, as it lagged in all national averages, most likely reflecting its commercial construction slowdown of the past few years.
Houston added 46 LEED projects in 2017 for a total of 528 LEED projects, surpassing the 500-project milestone. This was a 9.54% increase and a slight drop in the growth rate from 2016, when 50 projects were certified. There was a good distribution of project types with an increase in Schools and a decrease in Existing Buildings.
The average increase for the Top 50 cities was 10.76%, down from a 14.08% increase in 2016. The top 50 cities added 1,040 LEED projects, certifying 246.36 million square feet in 2016. The top 50 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs) added 1,868 LEED projects, certifying 369.33 million square feet, a 12.59% increase. The quantities and percentage increases were down in every category from 2016.
Number of Certified Projects in City Limits
Houston maintained its ranking as #5 for LEED projects within city limits but continues to lose ground to Los Angeles which added 21 more projects than Houston in 2017. There is a good chance that Houston will fall to #6 by the end of 2018. The first rank change was Miami moving up to #18 and Sacramento falling to #19. New York City continues to hold the top spot, adding 114 projects (13.97%) and Washington D.C. comes in at 32, adding 129 projects (16.79%). Chicago and Los Angeles both added 67 projects.
Minneapolis was the biggest rank jumper, soaring from #31 to #27, adding 16 projects, a 15.01% increase. The biggest dropper was Orlando, falling from #29 to #32. Other big gainers were Raleigh (19.18%), Boston (18.35%), Richmond (16.67%), and Honolulu (15.38%).
City Number
1 New York City 930
2 Wash. D.C. 889
3 Chicago 762
4 San Francisco 577
5 Houston 528
6 Los Angeles 502
7 Seattle 402
8 San Diego 385
9 Atlanta 370
10 Boston 329
11 Denver 293
12 Portland 283
13 Dallas 251
14 Charlotte 221
15 Philadelphia 218
16 Austin 208
17 Pittsburgh 190
18 Miami 163
19 Sacramento 160
20 Cincinnati 158
21 Albuquerque 152
22 San Antonio 150
23 Phoenix 144
24 Baltimore 135
25 Grand Rapids 133
Number of Certified Projects in Metropolitan Statistical Areas
Houston kept its #8 ranking in this category, adding 65 projects in the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) for a total of 678 projects, a 10.6% increase. The top 50 cities averaged a 9.59% gain in MSA growth.
All rankings remained the same until San Jose (#16) and Baltimore (#15) switched places. Detroit was the big gainer, jumping from #35 to #32, a 14.84% gain. The biggest loser was San Antonio, dropping from #30 to #35. Other big gainers were Richmond (15.04%), Washington D.C. (14.71%), Charlotte (14.53%), Boston (14.03%).
MSA Number
1 Wash. D.C. 2,066
2 New York City 1,782
3 Los Angeles 1,530
4 Chicago 1,329
5 San Francisco 1,167
6 Boston 886
7 Seattle 751
8 Houston 678
9 Dallas 638
10 San Diego 605
11 Atlanta 601
12 Miami 567
13 Philadelphia 550
14 Denver 515
15 Baltimore 478
16 San Jose 477
17 Portland 435
18 Phoenix 395
19 Minneapolis 325
20 Riverside 313
21 Sacramento 311
22 Pittsburgh 294
23 Charlotte 268
24 Austin 248
25 Cincinnati 247
Area of Certified Projects in City Limits (in million square feet)
The first time that Houston has slipped in any ranking since these statistics started being compiled in 2014, Houston has fallen to #4, being passed by Washington D.C., by a margin of only 100,000 square feet. Houston gained 16.8 MSF (11.96%), while D.C. added 21.7 MSF (15.99%), a pace that suggests that Houston will not regain the #3 spot without enacting a LEED mandate similar to the one that D.C. enforces.
We also have a new #1 in this category with New York City moving into the top spot, ahead of Chicago. NYC’s addition of 42.2 MSF (20.42%), was the biggest percentage increase on the Top 45 cities. Chicago gained 26.3 MSF (12.03%). The Top 50 cities gained an average of 13.10% in area certified.
Baltimore was the biggest rank gainer, moving from #28 to #25 (gaining 19.6%). Other big gainers were Austin (19.93%), Atlanta (19.3%), Minneapolis (17.95%), and Miami (17.05%)
City Area-MSF
1 New York City 250.00
2 Chicago 244.90
3 Wash. D.C. 157.40
4 Houston 157.30
5 San Francisco 129.20
6 Los Angeles 115.90
7 Atlanta 90.85
8 Boston 90.18
9 Seattle 81.20
10 Denver 69.32
11 Dallas 64.28
12 Las Vegas 49.14
13 San Diego 46.80
14 Minneapolis 45.67
15 Portland 43.40
16 Charlotte 39.09
17 Philadelphia 35.11
18 Austin 33.28
19 Miami 32.40
20 Sacramento 30.79
21 San Antonio 23.83
22 Phoenix 23.03
23 Pittsburgh 22.73
24 Cincinnati 19.86
25 Baltimore 17.75
Area of Certified Projects in Metropolitan Statistical Areas (in million square feet)
Houston maintained the #6 ranking with an 11.9% increase of projects certified in the metropolitan statistical area, adding 18.5 million square feet. New York City stayed at #1 with a large 17.86% increase, adding 51.8 msf.
Dallas dropped from #7 to #8 behind Boston. Another big rank drop was Las Vegas, falling from #16 to #20. Big rank gains were enjoyed by San Jose, jumping from #19 to #17 and Detroit from #36 to #34. Honolulu was the largest percentage gainer with 47.67%. Other large gains were New Haven with 23.83%, Atlanta with 19.36%, and Austin at 18.67%.
MSA Area-MSF
1 New York City 341.80
2 Wash. D.C. 338.50
3 Chicago 317.00
4 Los Angeles 242.80
5 San Francisco 199.50
6 Houston 174.00
7 Boston 151.20
8 Dallas 137.40
9 Atlanta 122.70
10 Seattle 120.30
11 Denver 96.37
12 Minneapolis 73.27
13 Miami 66.41
14 Riverside 64.29
15 Philadelphia 60.90
16 San Diego 60.75
17 San Jose 57.99
18 Phoenix 56.26
19 Portland 56.00
20 Las Vegas 55.16
21 Baltimore 53.40
22 Charlotte 42.41
23 Sacramento 42.00
24 Austin 36.74
25 Pittsburgh 32.99
Source: www.gbig.org data taken on 12/31/2017.
These rankings were calculated for the largest 65 U.S. cities based on population, but we only show the top 25 for brevity. We’re happy to share the complete database with anyone.