Star Market Wins Sustainable Design Awards

Star Market at Chestnut Hill, a new supermarket in Newton, MA designed by SUPERVALU Store Design Services, recently received two A.R.E. Sustainability Awards for its cutting-edge use of environmentally responsible technology.

Chestnut Hill is the flagship location for Shaw's/Star Market, a division of SUPERVALU, and New England's new standard for sustainable supermarkets.  It is the first supermarket in the nation to use all LED fixtures for its interior and exterior lighting, which reduce energy consumption by 50 to 65%, are recyclable and can last 10 times longer than conventional light sources.

The A.R.E. (Association for Retail Environments) Design Awards were presented at the annual GlobalShop conference in Las Vegas, where 47 store projects were recognized for the innovation and quality of their designs. Star Market at Chestnut Hill was presented with the Outstanding Merit award and the Innovation in Energy award in the Sustainability category, which was a new category in this year's competition.

In addition to its exclusive use of LED lighting, Star Market at Chestnut Hill is also the first supermarket in the nation to receive a GreenChill Platinum Award for green refrigeration technology, using just 275 pounds of refrigerant versus the typical 3,000 to 4,000 pounds. It is the second store in the nation to use an onsite 400kW combined heat and power fuel cell that provides 90% of the store's energy. The fuel cell is virtually pollution-free and independent of the local power grid. Other sustainable strategies include motorized night curtains, a hybrid water cooling tower and motion-activated light sensors.

This marks the third time a Store Design Services project has been recognized at the A.R.E Design Awards. The firm won an Outstanding Merit award in the Supermarket/Grocery Store category last year for The Market in Plymouth, MA, and another in 2006 for Highland Park Market in South Windsor, CT.