ATLANTA-New York City-based Rockefeller Group Development Corp. has completed what is said to be the largest LEED Gold-certified industrial building in the US and the second largest LEED-Gold industrial building in the world. The facility is a 1.5-million-square-foot distribution center in Social Circle, Georgia, about 45 minutes outside of Atlanta. It was built for the General Mills Corp. LEED Gold is the second highest designation a new building can receive from the US Green Building Council in Washington, DC. Les Smith, executive vice president for development at the Rockefeller Group Development Group, Corporation, declined to give the cost of the project.

The Rockefeller Group and General Mills originally sought LEED- Silver certification for the distribution center, but the number of credits accrued in five green design categories: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources and indoor environmental quality exceeded the number of credits needed for LEED-Silver, says Smith.

The project went quickly, says Smith. Rockefeller bought the 130 acres for the General Mills building only a year ago, and started construction 11 months ago. The company managed to finish the project in under a year, even though there were three 100-year storms during construction, he says.