Green Is Good at New City Store

January 17, 2011  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Green on January 18, 2011

City Furniture's new Boca Raton, Fla., superstore is pursuing Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

With features such as rooftop solar tubes for daylight harvesting to its LED lighting inside and out, the 93,680-square-foot complex, which features both the City Furniture and Ashley Furniture Homestore brands, is the first full-line furniture store in South Florida to seek LEED certification.

"This opening is truly about sustainability--both economic and environmental," said City Furniture President Keith Koenig. "Our company's roots are in South Florida, and we're deeply committed to grow with and help sustain this region. We're pleased to have generated more than 200 construction jobs and to be adding about 50 new retail jobs as we launch the store's operations."

Overall, the Broward County-based company employs more than 800. City Furniture's ground lease with the Boca Raton Airport Authority will also help support local economic growth, with rent going to enhance airport operations.

"Building 'green' is a natural extension of our corporate values and sustainable practices," Koenig said. "Going forward, we'll look to achieve LEED certification in every location where that's doable," noting that several new stores and renovations are on the boards for 2011.

Built by Stiles Construction and designed by architectural firm Garcia Stromberg, the new building takes its design inspiration in part from the neighboring Boca Raton Airport. A wing-like roof defining the Ashley Furniture Homestore and a dramatic vaulted roof over City Furniture recall the shape of historic airplane hangars.

The building is one of a handful of furniture stores nationwide that has been built to LEED standards, and the project team is seeking certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The superstore's environmental features are expected to use 42 percent less water for interior uses and 78 percent less for landscape irrigation. The high-efficiency energy management system, heat-reducing features throughout and strategic use of natural light will conserve energy.

Reconfiguring its network of stores to grow "smarter and greener" is at the heart of City Furniture€™s business strategy. The company recently closed three smaller stores in Boca Raton, Pompano Beach and Lantana, anticipating that the Boca Raton store will draw regionally and produce substantially higher revenues. The firm now has 14 City Furniture stores and nine Ashley Furniture HomeStores throughout Southeast and Southwest Florida.

If demand for home furnishings continues to improve in 2011, Koenig said the firm plans to begin constructing a new 56,000-square-foot City Furniture store in Cutler Bay to Silver LEED standards and renovating the firm's existing store, located on an adjacent site, as an Ashley Furniture Homestore; fully renovate the City Furniture store in Pinecrest's Dadeland area, expanding with a second floor; build a new Ashley Furniture Homestore next to the existing City Furniture store in West Palm Beach; and opening a new Ashley Furniture Homestore on Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale at a former Modernage store, pending negotiations that are underway to lease a portion of that property to a bank.

Last week's opening event in Boca Raton featured a silent auction of home furnishings to benefit Hospice by the Sea of Boca Raton and Florida Atlantic University.