Summerlin earns USGBC’s LEED precertification

Howard Hughes Holdings Inc. announced Summerlin has achieved LEED precertification by the U.S. Green Building Council, becoming Nevada’s first master-planned community to achieve this distinction.

Summerlin joins an elite global group of entities — including the Howard Hughes communities of The Woodlands, Bridgeland, Downtown Columbia and Ward Village — that are recognized by USGBC for their dedication to making their communities healthy, resilient, inclusive and inherently sustainable for residents.

With this addition, the company now boasts one of the largest LEED precertified or certified community portfolios in the U.S., covering more than 62,000 acres.

“Our achievement of LEED precertification for Summerlin — a thriving, award-winning community home to over 127,000 residents — demonstrates our dedication to sustainable development and conservation,” said David O’Reilly, Howard Hughes CEO. “Nationally recognized as a leader in water conservation, Summerlin has added over 7,300 new homes, 500,000 square feet of office space and a 10,000-capacity Triple A ballpark since 2018, yet water consumption has remained unchanged during this time — while Summerlin continues to provide an outstanding quality of life that makes it one of the bestselling communities in the country.”

Summerlin has a decades-long history of implementing environmental strategies, which have resulted in its LEED recognition. Summerlin voluntarily became the first community in the Las Vegas Valley to implement strict Water Smart conservation guidelines. As of March, Summerlin has removed 638,100 square feet of decorative grass, saving approximately 35 million gallons of water, annually.

According to Servidyne, a national energy and sustainability consulting firm that worked with Summerlinthrough the precertification, the community boasts an impressive carbon footprint of only 3.3 tonnes per person per year, which is 78 percent less than the national average. One contributing factor is the average work commute for Summerlin residents is less than 10 minutes. Summerlin residents also produced 62 percent less waste as compared with the national average based on Environmental Protection Agency figures from 2018.

“By achieving LEED for Communities precertification, Howard Hughes has laid the foundation for achieving its ambitious sustainability goals for Summerlin,” said Peter Templeton, CEO of USGBC. “LEED helps large-scale communities like Summerlin embrace best practices and innovations that protect the natural environment, community health and our climate while improving quality of life for all. We applaud Howard Hughes’ commitment to LEED across their national portfolio.”

This precertification announcement highlights Summerlin’s commitment to responsible development demonstrated through prior certifications of office and multifamily assets over the past decade. While Summerlin is designated as a LEED for Communities project, other buildings and projects have secured alternative LEED certifications.

Downtown Summerlin’s retail area, Tanager Echo apartments, as well as its office buildings One Summerlin, Two Summerlin and 1700 Pavilion, have all achieved LEED Silver. Summerlin’s newest office building Meridian is constructed to LEED Silver standards and pending certification.

Now, in its 34th year of development, Summerlin offers more amenities than any other Southern Nevada community. These include 300-plus parks of all sizes; 200-plus miles of interconnected trails; resident-exclusive community centers; 10 golf courses; 26 public, private and charter schools; a public library and performing arts center; Summerlin Hospital Medical Center; houses of worship representing a dozen different faiths; office parks and neighborhood shopping centers.

Downtown Summerlin offers fashion, dining, entertainment, Red Rock Resort and Class-A office buildings. City National Arena is home of the Vegas Golden Knights’ practice facility. The Las Vegas Ballpark is a world-class Triple-A baseball stadium and home of the Las Vegas Aviators.

Summerlin offers nearly 100 floor plans in approximately 20 neighborhoods throughout eight distinct villages and districts. Homes, built by many of the nation’s top homebuilders, are available in a variety of styles — from single-family homes to townhomes, priced from the mid-$400,000s to more than $1 million.

For information on all actively selling neighborhoods, visit Summerlin.com. Before you visit, call the builders to check on hours of operation. Phone numbers for each neighborhood are on Summerlin.com.