The arts center received silver certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, said Waynflete spokeswoman Kathy Dion. The LEED-certified building includes carbon dioxide sensors, recycled and regionally produced building materials and priority parking for fuel-efficient or carpool vehicles. (Portland Press Herald, December 22, 2009)

If you are a LEED AP (without specialty), enroll in the GBCI Credentialing Maintenance Program (CMP) by December 31, 2009 and earn Continuing Education (CE) hours  for all volunteer and committee work completed since January 1, 2009, and all other activities completed since July 8, 2009. LEED APs (without specialty) who enroll after December 31, 2009, can only count CE hours earned during their CMP reporting period. (www.gbci.org)

Hotels including the Marriott, MGM Mirage CityCenter and ARIA Resort & Casino continue to ramp up their eco-friendly projects. Some are adding unique programs to their “green” measures such as converting cooking oil to biodiesel while others are adding clean-fueled transportation and generating their own electricity. States are also adding green lodging certification programs.

On the west coast, the MGM Mirage CityCenter project has recycled more than 130,000 tons of recyclable materials generated since its inception, with 95 percent of the material diverted from landfills, according to Evergreen Recycling, reports Recycling Today. This translates into a carbon offset of 17.7 million gallons of gasoline and 385,000 barrels of crude oil, according to the article. (The Environmental Leader, Dec 22, 2009)

CityCenter’s Mandarin Oriental making Vegas debut

One of the world’s most prestigious hotel brands makes its Las Vegas debut today when the 47-story Mandarin Oriental opens at the $8.5 billion CityCenter.

It’s the third building of this week’s phased opening at MGM Mirage’s Strip resort campus and sets the stage for the Dec. 16 launch of Aria, the 4,000-room hotel-casino centerpiece of CityCenter. (Dec 4, 2009, Las Vegas Sun)

CityCenter’s unveils Crystals retail district

Adding a slew of high-end retailers to the Las Vegas Strip, CityCenter’s Crystals retail and entertainment district opened on Thursday, marking the unveiling of the massive project’s second building.

Crystals opened at noon for a charity shopping event and at 5 p.m. to the public. The 500,000-square-foot retail and dining district has direct access from Las Vegas Boulevard and houses some of the most high-end brands in fashion. (Dec 3, 2009, Las Vegas Sun)

Crystals, the 500,000-square-foot luxury retail and entertainment district at CityCenter, opens today pretty much how MGM Mirage officials envisioned five years ago: big, bold and energy efficient. (Dec. 3, 2009, Las Vegas Review Journal)