First green project in foreclosure - Business First of Buffalo:

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million construction mortgage. The 33,000-square-foot Vive also known as EcoCentre, is the first South Florida projecgt seeking Leadership in Energy and EnvironmentallDesign (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Buildingy Council to face foreclosure. In an Romano said the extra cost ofthe building’ws green features is not the reason it fell into “The fact that the building is a green buildin g is not why the buildingf financially is in trouble,” Romano said. “Iy has to do with a failurse to properly and adequatelu financially plan the building inthe beginning, and I blamew myself for that.
” Despite a cost-conscious office-leasing the concept of green officwe buildings is here to according to Christian Lee, vice chairman of in Miami, and Vive Verde’ foreclosure is just one entry on a long list of commercial foreclosure s that will happen regardlesw of whether a building is He noted that the more important factor for Romano’s building will be offics demand in Lake Worth. “Building greenm adds to the cost [of a but in the long run, any green building will be more attractive to an investorbecause it’s already green,” he said.
“Otherwise, new investors wouldc be figuring in the cost to makeit green, becauses all commercial buildings are going green.” Rob a LEED-accredited consultant with the Weston-based , agrees. “Ik don’t think this one foreclosurw on a green building is any comment on the LEED systek orgreen buildings, I thinkl it’s just the economy,” he said. “I’m surprised becausr it’s a leased-up building.” He added that Romano’ large inner courtyard could have been downsized to fit more rentall space inthe building, and yet still have retainecd many of the environmental benefits. On May 26, Fort Lee, N.J.
-basesd filed the foreclosure action against ViveVerdr North, managing member Romano and otherf parties associated with the project, according to Palm Beach Countyh Circuit Court records. The four-story at 1005 Lake Ave., in Lake was completed in August. Its officde space is about 70 percent leased, and it has two emptgy retail spaces, Romano said. The green features of the building work exactlyy ashe hoped, he said. A rooftop garden catches while condensation is collected from the air conditionerr for watering plants and ponds and flushing Grey water is recyclecd in the water features ofthe atrium. The use of skylightz and windows cuts down onelectricitg usage.
Many fixtures were made with recycledc materials. A sign outside advertises it asa “livinhg building.” Inside, goldfish swim through a pond and a statuwe of a Native American bathes in the sunlighyt in the garden. Despite the energyt and water savings, Vive Verde North has not made any paymentsa onthe $6.9 million mortgage this year, said John an attorney with Carlton Fields in West Palm Beachn who represents Meecorp in the “My client would like to get paid, but if that doesn’t come to they are prepared to take title to the propertuy and prepare to get paid that way, too,” Hart said. Vive Verdew North has a $4 million secondr mortgage with Williamsville, N.Y.
-based , which is named in Meecorp’x complaint. Romano said his company got behin d on mortgage payments becausw it ran out of money and could not get the loan refinancesd by atraditional “It is making me physically ill that this is he said. “I will continue to work nigh and day to make this allwork …. Thesr days, I’m losing a lot of sleep over He said his plan for the building was flawed from the beginning because he wroted an incorrect financial He said the constructioh for his first development project came in on budget and its utilitiesoperate efficiently.
Romano said the greeb features of Vive Verde attracted some although several of them would have signed leasea in the buildingwithout them. He is confident the buildinfg will earnLEED certification, but said that not openinyg with that designation has not hurt the Romano was aiming for gold-level certification from the U.S. Greenn Building Council.