March 4, 2015 | Green Street
http://urbanchestnut.com/2015/02/20/ucbc-grove-brewery-bierhall-mos-first-leed-certified-brewery/
In February 2014, Urban Chestnut Brewing Company opened their second brewery, Urban Chestnut Grove Brewery & Bierhall, located in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood, aka The Grove. During the planning stages of opening their new Grove Brewery & Bierhall, and as part of the company’s commitment to sustainability, Wolfe and Kuplent decided to pursue LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Certification. To accomplish this goal, Urban Chestnut partnered with Green Street St. Louis, an innovative real estate firm recognized for the sustainable redevelopment of underutilized St. Louis-area commercial properties into LEED certified buildings.
The 70,000 square foot Grove Brewery & Bierhall, which once housed the Renard Paper Company, features a 450 person bierhall, brew house and fermentation hall with about 20,000 bbls of annual brewing capacity, as well as a packaging hall and warehouse. As part of the building’s sustainably-focused renovation, brick walls were removed and replaced with glass windows in both the bierhall and fermentation hall not only for aesthetic purposes, but also to utilize natural light. It also features a solar panel array, easy access to public transportation, bike storage, and an assortment of other energy saving features, all of which help reduce fossil fuel costs and the carbon footprint of the brewery and its customers.
These features and other improvements have resulted in Urban Chestnut achieving a LEED Silver Certification for the Grove Brewery & Bierhall, making it the first LEED Certified brewery in the state of Missouri.
“Achieving LEED Certification is a big thrill for us, as it was one of our core objectives when we decided to build the Grove Brewery & Bierhall,” said David Wolfe. “By sustainably renovating an existing building, not only were able to quickly move into a facility, which consequently allowed us to grow our business without interruption, but we were also able to stay true to our principles of environmental stewardship and social responsibility.”
“Bringing the Grove Brewery & Bierhall to life was a win-win for Urban Chestnut,” stated Florian Kuplent. “It has allowed us to greatly increase our brewing capacity in a more sustainable and responsible manner.”
“The certification is proof that not only is UCBC brewing great beer, but great beer in a great building!” said Rob Maltby, Green Street St. Louis, LEED AP ID+C, Project Manager. “The whole team came together and worked from the get-go to create an energy efficient and aesthetically pleasing building. Urban Chestnut serves as a showcase for the City of St. Louis on how a reuse of a building can really impact a neighborhood (The Grove) positively for the future.”
