Hamilton County Mayor Jim Coppinger commended staff on earning a LEED Silver Certification for the Business Development Center.
The U.S. Green Building Council awarded the certification on Monday for the former manufacturing facility, which the county recently renovated. Those improvements cost $4.9 million.
"When the county began operating the facility as a business incubator in partnership with the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, we knew we were growing a new breed of entrepreneurs," Coppinger said in a statement. "Now we have a LEED Silver certified building that matches the vitality and ingenuity of our 55 business tenants and their 400 employees."
The county partnered with the U.S. Economic Development Agency and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development on the renovation.
The renovation included replacing the roof, installing energy efficient windows, upgrading electrical system, creating new lighting and communications systems, replacing two elevators and updating the fire protection system.
"With each new LEED-certified building, we get one step closer to USGBC's vision of a sustainable built environment within a generation," said a statement from Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO and Founding Chair, U.S. Green Building Council. "As the newest member of the LEED family of green buildings, Hamilton County's Business Development Center is an important addition to the growing strength of the green building movement."
The building is located at 100 Cherokee Blvd.