hospitalitystyle.com

(March 2009) posted on Mon Mar 23, 2009 EDT

Storied Albuquerque property seeks gold-level green status.

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The former Posada de Albuquerque is undergoing a $30 million upgrade that owner Historic Hotels LLC hopes will make it one of the first historically renovated hotels in America to gain LEED certification.

The 70-year-old property - which is being renamed the Andaluz - does indeed have a storied past: It was the first hotel in the state constructed by New Mexico native Conrad Hilton, and it was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. As a result, its modernization was a balancing act that involved "preserving the best of the property's history while infusing it with modern technology and amenities, with an emphasis on environmental consciousness," said general manager Yancy Sturgeon.

Gemstone Hotels & Resorts of Park City, Utah, which will operate the Andaluz, hopes the 107-room property will achieve gold LEED status. Here are some of the environmentally friendly features expected to help make that happen:

• Energy-efficient fluorescent and LED lighting in guest rooms and public spaces.
• Interior finishes that incorporate recycled materials, natural products and low-VOC content.
• A solar-heated hot -water system: 60 percent of the hotel's hot water will be come from solar energy generated by 73 solar panels installed on the roof
• An integrated building energy management system: All guest rooms will have occupancy sensors that conserve energy by automatically dialing back heating/cooling and lighting levels when the spaces are unoccupied.
• Energy-efficient windows (that are also historically accurate).
• High-efficiency mechanical equipment: The hotel's aging boiler and chiller plants have been replaced with energy-efficient, quick-recovery units.