Green Building Opportunity Index takes holistic approach

A new green building market ranking by Cushman & Wakefield and BetterBricks pegs Portland in the No. 12 spot for commercial real estate development opportunity specifically for "green" office buildings.

The Green Building Opportunity Index surveyed 25 U.S. central business districts based on six different factors. While the recent Energy Star efficient building ranking just counted up the number of certified energy-efficient buildings, the index looks at market conditions, investment outlook, green building implementation (which includes LEED and Energy Star ratings), state energy initiatives, general green culture and local mandates and incentives.

"The goal behind this was to relay information to our clients in a holistic way so they could make informed decisions," said Matt Johnson, a Cushman & Wakefield broker based in Portland who helped develop the index, "not to tell them what's important and what's not."

Looking at all six attributes, San Francisco ranked at the top of the index, followed by Oakland and Midtown Manhattan. Seattle was ranked 11th.

Of the individual categories Portland ranked No. 2 for its "green culture," between Downtown, New York City (No. 1) and Miami (No.3). The variables study for the culture criterion, as tracked by SustainLane, include green economy, city innovation, planning and land use and transit ridership.