Walgreens Continues Journey Into Future With Ambitions to Build The Nation's First Net Zero Energy Retail Store

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Sometimes Walgreens really just blows our socks off. It happened with rock bottom pricing for candy corn in Old Town, opening a monumental flagship in the Loop and opening the city's largest drugstore inside a Wicker Park landmark. And today, our appreciation for this Chicagoland-based mega company has hit an all-time high with the announcement of plans to build the nation's first LEED Platinum certified net zero energy retail store.

Starting in just a few weeks at the intersection of Chicago Avenue and Keeney Street in Evanston, new Walgreens store will be built using more than 800 solar panels, wind turbines, geothermal technology, energy-efficient building materials, LED lighting, sunlight harvesting techniques and ultra-high-efficiency refrigeration. An existing energy-sucking Walgreens is currently being demolished on that footprint.

Walgreens is placing this store in Evanston because of the proximity to its HQ in Deerfield, so staffed engineers can visit it constantly over the next year, monitoring it's energy output — there will be no energy intake. With the information gathered, Walgreens will implement new energy saving techniques to its existing stores. To follow the new store's two-year journey to achieve net zero status and the company's other green initiatives, visit the Net Zero Facebook page.
· All Walgreens Coverage [Racked Chicago]