By Thomas Miner

July 7th, 2009 - The REI store in Round Rock, Texas took "Project of the Year" at the Association for Retail Environments' (A.R.E.) Sustainability Awards, launched at GlobalShop 2009. The Award honors projects that balance comprehensive sustainability programs with good design.

The A.R.E announcement describes:

"Marrying a holistic, comprehensive sustainable approach with outstanding design aesthetics and functionality, this store exemplifies today's green retailing possibilities, dispelling once and for all the outdated notion that sustainable design is an oxymoron. Addressing both environmental and social responsibility, the store's sustainable measures provide operational savings for the retailer, meeting triple-bottom-line objectives."

Some of the key sustainability features of the REI location:

• Some building, furniture, and fixture materials made from rapidly renewable, recycled, or reclaimed resources
• Recycled rubber flooring throughout the building - which outlasts most other types of flooring
• All store fixtures are constructed of rapidly renewable and/or recycled materials, such as bamboo veneer fiberboard
• Low-VOC paints, sealants, and adhesives used throughout the store raise the quality of indoor air
• Plumbing fixtures use more than 40% less water than the standard baseline for a typical retail space
• Rooftop photovoltaic panels that harness up to 13% of the store's energy consumption
• Solar thermal water system to heat 70 percent of the store's water

The project has received LEED Gold certification under the LEED CI for Retail pilot rating system. Earlier this year, REI announced that it would use recycled water bottles to manufacture it's own brand of travel mugs.

Following REI was the Founding Farmers' Restaurant in Washington, D.C. and The North Face location in Boise, Idaho.

Three projects received Outstanding Merit recognition: The Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World in Denham Springs, La., Canadian Tire Smart Store in Welland, Ontario, Canada, and a Timberland store at London's Westfield Shopping Center.

Read the announcement from A.R.E. here