Bold Innovation meets High-Performance Design.

Creating sustainable places requires additional foresight and a long-term perspective. The payoffs can be immediate and the rewards get better over time. Such is the nature of most paradigm shifts: They eventually become the new normal.

Regardless of property type, sustainability has been a guiding principle for our work since our inception. We consider the benefits of building sustainably as two-fold: it is our social responsibility to conserve resources, and when done correctly, the result is a more valuable investment. From an aesthetic and functional rain garden in San Francisco to Colorado’s first green roof, we’ve successfully incorporated elements of sustainable construction. Ever the pioneers, we took on a Net Zero commercial project powered by an east-facing, exterior solar wall, the first of its kind in Colorado, and outfitted it with materials to create a tight building envelope. As the future of real estate comes into focus, long-term value can not truly exist without attention to sustainability.

A building’s functional components aren’t the sole determinants of sustainability. A truly sustainable community depends on the behavior of those who comprise it. In keeping with the Net Zero mission of our latest commercial project, we’ve drafted community guidelines for energy use. We consider transportation and mobility as key components of sustainability. Elements like private car and bike shares, charging stations for electric vehicles and proximity to public transportation incentivize tenants and guests to commute sustainably. A building is a sum of its parts, and its occupants are the core.

By the end of next year, we will have completed more than a dozen "All Electric" buildings. Ranging from mixed-use office buildings to multi-family apartments, these buildings are "Best in Class" offerings that use no fossil fuels. They feature low energy consumption envelopes, variable refrigerant volume heating and cooling systems, all LED lighting, and sophisticated energy management systems. We have been pioneering the "New Normal".

We utilize a variety of remotely monitored energy management systems to control everything from lighting to heating and cooling to our rooftop and vertical wall solar arrays. The software optimizes the performance of each building system and works with an overlay software product that optimizes the building as a whole and allows us to assist our local utility in demand management practices.

Some places shouldn’t be developed. Especially when they include core environmental, cultural or visual resources, we should tread lightly. As part of our commitment to sustainability, we have helped to preserve thousands of acres while creating value for our families and investors at the same time.

Morgan Creek Ventures partnered with Rocky Mountain Institute to structure a NZE lease, otherwise known as the ‘Green Lease’, that was desirable to both parties. The lease helps to align tenant and landlord interests for investments in energy efficiency, purchase of RECs to offset excess energy use, and maintain peak performance.