Chicago Gets First Green Jewel-Osco Grocery
The Jewel-Osco grocery chain opens its first green store today in Chicago’s River West neighborhood. The new store features not only green construction but some green items inside as well, including locally produced foods and organic selections.
The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the new store took five years to develop, thanks to a slew of special engineering and site use requirements. Among the challenges: building the facility 25 feet over Metra’s train tracks to provide bridge access for local residents.
The new Jewel-Osco is gunning for LEED green construction certification, citing a number of eco-friendly building elements. They include a green roof, systems for recycling heat and recovering energy, a unit that detects refrigeration leaks to cut refrigerant loss and waste, concrete floors designed for easy cleaning without chemicals and water-saving plumbing fixtures.
And here’s a unique feature I haven’t seen anywhere else (if you know of a grocery store elsewhere that offers this, let me know): the store has a dietitian on hand to give shoppers tips and advice on healthful grocery choices. Considering how overwhelming the typical modern grocery shopping experience can be, that’s probably a good idea.
Check out the Sun-Times feature to learn more about the new store.
