The Courtyard Charleston/Summerville, planned for a 2012 opening, will be the first hotel built using Marriott International’s green hotel prototype, in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).
Marriott is the first in the hospitality industry to launch a green hotel prototype that has been preapproved by the council as part of its LEED Volume program, meaning that any Marriott hotel that follows these plans will earn basic LEED certification, or possibly higher, upon USGBC final approval. The planned hotel is in line with the company's goal to have 300 LEED-certified hotels by 2015.
The Charleston property will introduce the first phase of The Parks of Berkley, a community consisting of 5,000 acres and one of the largest planned developments in the Southeastern U.S.
Based on the results of the Courtyard brand, Marriott plans to create similar green hotel prototypes for Residence Inn by Marriott, TownePlace Suites by Marriott, SpringHill Suites by Marriott and Fairfield Inn by Marriott.
