• Developers who are working with conversions and renovations of older spaces say that they attend to the basics of keeping heat in and cold out before they worry about what energy-efficient mechanical systems to install.
• Ed McNamara, a developer in Portland, Ore.,  says he gets the biggest return on his money by making sure his projects have a tight envelope. He gets there with computer modeling that looks at structural elements, insulation, windows and other aspects.
• Shawn Zimney, who is vice president of development for Village Green, based in Michigan, says he can get a 5% reduction in the cost of HVAC by making a nominal increase in the thermal efficiency of walls.

From the article:

Portland based developer Ed McNamara is keenly focused on building green and achieving high levels of energy, water and other resource efficiencies. And he's obligated by HUD and other public financing partners to rent at below-market rates. ...