The idea to build "green" came from Pat’s son, a Houston based energy attorney in a passing comment that eventually gave rise to the Pat Lobb Toyota in McKinney, Texas, the first LEED certified auto dealership in the World. As Pat tells it, he and his son pulled out a piece of paper and began a brainstorming session that sparked the initial interest. That was the beginning of the journey, which lead to several larger meetings involving stakeholders, building and engineering experts in a kind of “wish list,” “what if we,” and “how can we,” discovery process. Since this was the first auto dealership to be built to LEED standards, some of the challenges were unique, such as how do you air condition a service area, how do you ventilate cars in the service area so they do not compromise the health of the mechanics, how can you reduce the water usage in the car wash, how can you capture rainwater off of the large parking lot, or roof, of from the the HVAC system? These were just some of the considerations on top of the requirements in the LEED rating system that needed to be thought through. The bottom line for Pat however, was the bottom line, and while he wanted to build to LEED standards, he make no apologies for taking the business approach first. If Pat was not convinced of the return on investment for any initiatives then he was not interested in pursuing that particular credit.
Pat enlisted the services of Turner Construction, Gensler Architects, James Johnston & Associates, MEP Engineer, HARC energy modeling consultant, Command Commissioning and Toyota Motor Sales as his collaborative team. The team carefully analyzed multiple systems with digital energy modeling software, and determined an estimated return on investment based on conservative future energy cost, and as compared to other similar dealerships in the same climate.
Some of the LEED features of the 14 acre facility include...
Site design with building and daylighting orientation
T-5 fluorescent fixtures with electronic ballasts
Metal halide lighting
Light-Emitting Diode (LED) lighting
Increased ceiling and wall insulation
Low-E windows
Insulated water heaters and pipes
Native landscaping
Energy Star HVAC equipment and qualified products when possible
Water cistern to capture condensation water from the rooftop air conditioners
Recycled and filtered water used in the car wash (250 cars are washed a day)
Heating in garage is provided by recycled oil (captured from oil changes)
Quick opening garage doors in the service area
Recycled content for building materials was used when possible
Low VOC paints and finishes
Customer education boards on the LEED features are visible in the showroom
Over 16,000 gallons of water a month are captured in this cistern from the condensation generated by the roof top air conditioners
Payback
Pat estimated that to build the dealership to LEED standards cost about 7% more than conventional construction methods, but the payback on that premium was 3 years, and once paid back, the savings continues to benefit the bottom line for the dealership.
Estimated savings
20% less energy
30% carbon savings
50% less water use
85% construction and waste recycled
Pat Lobb Toyota serves as a model for how the LEED rating systems can be applied to buildings and business that we may not have thought of as potential candidates before. With the right consulting team and a motivated owner at the helm, Pat proves that LEED standards can be adopted across a wide range of businesses. And when the business case for return on investment opportunities are made apparent, then it just makes good sense, and saving money is a universal language that any business owner can appreciate. Pat’s dealership has been toured by other car manufactures, several universities across the US and Canada, and business owners all interested in how to build or retrofit a building to achieve a higher degree of sustainability and cost savings. As as you might expect Pat Lobb Toyota has generated great deal of interest, and a few in-person visits from Toyota’s corporate executives from Japan. The result is what began a conversation with his son, might very well turn out to be the way Toyota dealerships are design and constructed going forward.
