It's the most eco-friendly building in Texas, and the second most eco-friendly building in the nation. You may have passed by the Treehouse Memorial City.
The Liberty Kitchen restaurant is on the first floor, which is open to everyone, but the Treehouse itself is just for employees, until now.
KPRC was invited to give you this exclusive look.
The building houses the development offices of MetroNational, the company that owns and manages Memorial City.
Vice President of Property Management Harry Hadland said they're hoping to set an example of how being eco-friendly can set businesses apart and above the rest.
“It represents a very high standard. Of course, it's a double LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) platinum building,” Hadland said.
That means they've received some impressive acknowledgment because everything inside is eco-friendly to the max, including:
Recycled countertops
Refurbished wood, furniture
Countertops made from recycled glass and beer bottles
Even the water is re-used
“All of the water comes from, it's rainwater that's collected into 5,000-gallon cisterns and it's used for irrigation and to flush the toilets,” Hadland said.
The rooftop garden adds more than beauty from a bird’s eye view. It reduces what Hadland said is a heat island effect, meaning the plants are absorbing heat that would otherwise heat concrete or steel roofs and increase A/C use inside.
“We're all about reducing the carbon footprint, becoming more sustainable, more earth-friendly,” Hadland said. “So these types of measures, these types of things that we do ultimately help the environment, help all of us.”
