6 must reads for the AEC industry today: August 12, 2020

1. Sustainability is key for Denver Water’s modernized campus and distribution system (BD+C) 
"As part of the public agency’s multiphase modernization that linked eight new or fully renovated facilities within a 35-acre operations campus, the building was designed to achieve LEED-NC Platinum and Net Zero Energy certification standards."

2. UC Davis’s new dining commons is a nod to the region’s agricultural roots (BD+C)  
"The Latitude Dining Commons at UC Davis is a new 500-seat facility with a design inspired by the Central Valley. The space represents the food and farming culture of both the university and the surrounding region."

3. Inefficient air conditioning is a key contributor to global warming (BD+C) 
"An estimated 3.6 billion cooling appliances are in use globally today, and that number is growing by up to 10 devices every second, the report says. To make matters worse, most air conditioning units use hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), which are potent greenhouse gases."

4. We haven’t even seen the coronavirus’s full impact on consumers, says this VC (Forbes)
"While some consumer-facing startups have suffered from the pandemic, consumer spending has actually shown increases. However, uncertainty looms over the rest of the year."

5. The pandemic is revolutionizing healthcare benefits: Now landlords are offering them too (Bisnow)
"As the coronavirus pandemic ramped up in mid-March, U.S. employers began to worry that their employee healthcare costs would skyrocket. Meanwhile, telemedicine, which before the novel coronavirus was already being seen as a possible cost-cutting measure in employee health coverage, was poised for an explosion."

6. Litigation, vacant spaces: How COVID-19 is shifting commercial real estate (MiBiz)
"The pandemic-led closures also are leading to new litigation over unpaid rent and raising questions about the future uses of space, all while landlords and tenants seek recourse."