We recently helped the folks at Metro Lighting open their new facility in Berkeley. The project includes a manufacturing studio, a large showroom and offices, all of which are used to create and sell hand-crafted light fixtures. Metro Lighting is a model for sustainability in design, construction and business operations: Sustainable and eco-friendly materials (such as low flow plumbing fixtures, FSC woods, no and low VOC paints) were incorporated throughout the space. During construction 90% of the demolition lumber was salvaged, 90% of the demolition waste recycled and furnishings from the previous location reused. The project is capped by a roof-mounted 21 kilowatt photovoltaic solar energy system which produces all of the energy the facility uses -- no small feat for a lighting showroom!

NEWS UPDATE: Metro Lighting was awarded the 2011 Acterra Business Environmental Award for Sustainable Built Environments. Acterra's Business Environmental Awards honor Bay Area businesses for their leadership in business practices, sustainable design, and environmental soundness, and the promotion of social justice.

See interviews with the owners and architect Charles Kahn about the project: