Expansion Magazine has released their ninth annual “America’s 50 Hottest Cities” list and St. Louis made the cut. Cities were listed alphabetically, not in rank order.

The list is based strictly on perceptions rather than cold, hard data, according to managing editor Ken Krizner. The publication polled 80 prominent site location consultants on their choices for the nation’s best cities for expanding and relocating companies. Consultants ranked metro areas according to business environment, work force quality, operating costs, incentive programs, work force training programs, and the ease of working with the local political and economic development community.

All 362 Metropolitan Statistical Areas were considered, so the cities that make America’s 50 Hottest Cities are in the top 14 percent of all U.S. metro markets. In the eyes of premier site location consultants, these metro areas are top choice.

The St. Louis MSA includes the City of St. Louis, St. Louis County, the Missouri counties of Saint Charles, Jefferson, Franklin, Lincoln and Warren, and the Illinois counties of Madison, Saint Clair, Clinton, Monroe and Jersey.

Reference: Expansion Magazine Online

If you’re involved in school construction, you may want to sign up for a web broadcast on March 7, 2 p.m. sponsored by Environmental Design + Construction magazine and the Green Design Solutions conference, featuring Rod Wille, Senior Vice President and Manager of Sustainable Construction for Turner Construction, a leading builder of traditional and sustainable projects. The webinar “The Dollars and Sense of Green Schools: Perception & Reality” will discuss common perceptions about the costs and benefits of building Green, and offer facts from national studies, project case studies and the company’s own experience that to support or disprove those perceptions

According to Interior Design magazine, the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability (AASHE) in Higher Education has passed a new policy requiring all U.S. campus construction to be built according to the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Eleven Federal agencies, several state and local governments, and private developers already follow the LEED Green Building Rating System.

In addition, at least 200 presidents are expected to sign on to the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment by June, pledging to eliminate campus greenhouse gas emissions over time.

From Manhattan to Los Angeles, the luxury home market is strong and baby boomers seem to be the driving force. Boomers are the target market for luxury home builders, developers, and real estate agents, according to Realty Times, because almost one in four boomers has a net worth of $500,000 or more. Virtually all of these high net-worth households are home owners and 47 percent own more than one home. According to a study by the National Association of Realtors®, boomers want amenities where they retire, including cultural activities such as museums and art galleries.

As an incentive to developers of “green” commercial or multi-unit residential projects, New Resource Bank of San Francisco will provide a 1/8th percent discount and more money - up to 80% loan-to-value (LTV) - for projects designed and built to green LEED standards. New Resource Bank focuses on financing sustainable resources and attracts like-minded depositors. Among its founding investors is national green building expert Greg Kats, a former DOE official and adviser to the California Green Building Task Force.