Best Projects, Residential/Hospitality: Shore Hotel Makes Room For Sustainable Features

Completed in December 2011, the LEED Gold 90,000-sq-ft hotel on Santa Monica's Ocean Avenue has two four-story concrete buildings, including 164 rooms, two restaurant spaces, a conference room, a fitness center, a gym, an outdoor courtyard with a solar-heated pool and spa and four levels of subterranean parking. A three-level, glass-enclosed sky bridge connects the buildings.

Photo Courtesy of Sibylle Alligaier

High-end exterior finishes such as stainless-steel panels, architectural concrete, wood cladding, point-supported glass walls and integrally colored plaster accentuate the U-shaped hotel design.

To accommodate the building systems of the $37-million oceanfront project, the construction team used 3D CAD and building information modeling for clash detection before installing piping, ductwork and other equipment.

LEED credits include using wood from sustainable forests and recycling or salvaging more than 90% of construction waste, daylighting, a single-layer PVC-membrane reflective roof, heat recovery and energy-efficient elevators.

Other green features include an occupancy sensor system, which automatically adjusts lighting and temperature in guest rooms; eco-friendly furnishings and finishes; and roof-mounted solar panels that heat the hotel's pool.

Native plants were used for the landscaping, reducing irrigation demands, and a stormwater management plan was incorporated to capture and treat runoff.

The Shore Hotel is the first property in California to implement the Savings by Design program, allowing for participation in California Edison's Auto Demand Response. That enables the hotel to earn incentives for reducing its peak-period energy use.

"The owner was very supportive from day one, making sure that the entire team was focused on achieving the required credits," says Jeromy Rogan, project manager for Morley Builders, Santa Monica. "The architect was very instrumental in achieving and coordinating the design credits. The subcontractors on the job were on top of their paperwork requirements. It was an incredibly smooth process."

Shore Hotel

Santa Monica

Key Players

Owner: Ocean Avenue Management, Santa Monica

Contractor: Benchmark Contractors, Santa Monica

Lead Design: Gensler, Los Angeles

Structural Engineer: Saiful/Bouquet, Pasadena

Civil Engineer: Incledon Consulting Group, Costa Mesa

MEP: W M Group West Engineers PC, Los Angeles

Electrical: Apollo Electric: Brea

Solar Heating: Permacity Construction: Los Angeles

Electrical: Apollo Electric, Brea