America's first sustainable building may find home in Rochester

Sustainability isn't cheap. But, really, what is these days? It's an estimated $2.6 million to develop an 8,000-square-foot building into a combination brewpub, organic eatery, and sustainable showplace. It would be the first sustainable restaurant in the country. That place, Mind, Body & Spirits, is looking for a September opening.

Excerpt:

"In a nutshell, it's an organic restaurant that specializes in local and organic products. And our goal is to make it a fully sustainable restaurant, which, if that's the case, will be the first fully sustainable restaurant in the country," Plesz said.

The nearly 8,000-square-foot building was constructed in the 1890s, opened as a dry goods and millinery store and most recently housed an interior design firm, said Ed Kelly, principal with Archiopolis.

An artist's rendering of the new restaurant.
It's being retrofitted with new, energy efficient windows and ceiling and attic insulation, a relocated elevator shaft and a three-story stair tower. A 2,000-square-foot addition will house a rooftop patio, greenhouse and new Energy Star kitchen facilities.

Read the entire article here.
Enjoy this story? Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.