Sustainability

The Merchandise Mart's commitment to environmental sustainability spans several decades of dedication, research and hard work, including achievement of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Existing Buildings (LEED-EB) certification. This goal was achieved with assistance from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (IDCEO).The LEED Green Building Rating System is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard developed by the United States Green Building Council for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

In 2009, 350 West Mart Center was awarded LEED® -EBOM (Existing Buildings, Operations & Maintenance) Gold Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. LEED® Certification is the nationally accepted benchmark for design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

The LEED-EBOM Gold Certification also includes the 535-room Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza, making it the first and largest LEED certified hotel in the city of Chicago.

In the course of a recent year, The Mart Center recycled more than 11 million pounds of waste, preserving 5.5 million gallons of water, and saving more than 13,000 trees. Through strategies recommended by the Clean Air Counts campaign, The Mart Center reduced 264,018 pounds of VOC pollution, setting the standard for reduction by a commercial office building, and achieving 40% of Clean Air Counts’ goals. This was accomplished in part by switching from high-VOC to low-VOC cleaning products. Through these efforts, The Mart Center is able to prevent 47,000 pounds of pollutants from entering the atmosphere.

The Mart Center, a 6 million square-foot, 600 tenant commercial complex is proud to make sustainability an ongoing priority.