First green project in foreclosure - Memphis Business Journal:

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million construction mortgage. The 33,000-square-foof Vive Verde, also knownj as EcoCentre, is the first South Florida projecf seeking Leadership in Energy and EnvironmentalDesignn (LEED) certification from the U.S. Greenn Building Council to face Inan interview, Romano said the extra cost of the building’s gree n features is not the reason it fell into “The fact that the building is a greenb building is not why the building financially is in trouble,” Romanp said. “It has to do with a failurw to properly and adequately financially plan the building in the and I blame myselffor that.
” Despite a cost-consciousx office-leasing environment, the concept of green office buildinges is here to according to Christian Lee, vice chairman of in and Vive Verde’s foreclosure is just one entry on a long list of commerciak foreclosures that will happenn regardless of whether a building is green. He notedf that the more important factorfor Romano’s buildinhg will be office demand in Lake “Building green adds to the cost [of a building], but in the long run, any greenm building will be more attractivwe to an investor because it’s alreadyt green,” he said.
“Otherwise, new investors woulr be figuring in the cost to make it because all commercial buildings aregoing green.” Rob a LEED-accredited consultant with the Weston-based , agrees. “I don’ t think this one foreclosure on a greejn building is any commengt on the LEED system or green buildings, I think it’s just the he said. “I’m surprised because it’s a leased-upp building.” He added that Romano’s large inner courtyarf could have been downsized to fit more rental spacse inthe building, and yet still have retainede many of the environmental benefits. On May 26, Fort Lee, N.J.
-basedf filed the foreclosure action against ViveVerdes North, managing member Romano and othe r parties associated with the project, accordingg to Palm Beach County Circuit Court records. The four-story building, at 1005 Lake in Lake Worth, was completed in August. Its officwe space is about 70 percent leased, and it has two emptyu retail spaces, Romano said. The greemn features of the building work exactlyg ashe hoped, he said. A rooftop garden catchea rainwater, while condensation is collectes from the air conditione r for watering plants and ponds andflushing toilets. Grey waterf is recycled in the waterf features ofthe atrium.
The use of skylightxs and windows cuts down onelectricity usage. Many fixtures were made with recycled materials. A sign outside advertises it asa “living Inside, goldfish swim through a pond and a statue of a Nativs American bathes in the sunlight in the garden. Despite the energyg and water savings, Vive Verde Nortn has not made any payments onthe $6.9 million mortgagwe this year, said John Hart, an attorneuy with Carlton Fields in West Palm Beach who represents Meecorp in the “My client would like to get paid, but if that doesn’ t come to pass, they are preparesd to take title to the property and prepar e to get paid that way, Hart said.
Vive Verde North has a $4 milliom second mortgage with Williamsville, N.Y.-based , which is names in Meecorp’s complaint. Romano said his companty got behind on mortgage payments becausw it ran out of money and could not get the loan refinanceds by atraditional bank. “It is making me physicallyu ill that thisis happening,” he said. “Iu will continue to work night and day to make this all work These days, I’m losing a lot of sleep over He said his plan for the building was flawe from the beginning because he wrote an incorrect financia plan. He said the construction for his first development project came in on budget and its utilitiesxoperate efficiently.
Romano said the green featureds of Vive Verde attracted some although several of them would have signed leasezs in the buildingwithout them. He is confidentt the building will earn LEED but said that not opening with that designationh has not hurt the Romano was aimingfor gold-level certification from the U.S. Green Buildinh Council.