Gaia Napa Valley, the first LEED certified state hotel, opens for business, while San Francisco’s Orchard Garden’s opening projected for this month
By Bill Picture
Published: November, 2006
The Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco and the Gaia Napa Valley Hotel in American Canyon have been racing to be the first hotel in the state to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s requirements for LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) certification.
After months of speculation as to which would be the Golden State’s first green hotel open for business, Bobby Freeman, Director of Sales and Marketing at Gaia Napa Valley Hotel has confirmed, We’re opening this Saturday afternoon, October 28, with a Grand Opening sometime in mid-December.
At press time, the projected opening date for the Orchard Garden Hotel was Nov. 15.
Although, Gaia Napa will be the first LEED certified hotel in the state, the third in the country, the Orchard Garden Hotel will be San Francisco’s first all-green hotel built from the ground up.
Not only has the Orchard adhered to the nationally accepted standards for environmentally sustainable or green construction, but management at the 104-room hotel is also incorporating enviable green practices into its day-to-day operation. In addition to using chemical-free cleaning products, recycled paper and soy-based inks, the Orchard Garden will also be the first hotel in San Francisco to use guestroom key cards that turn off lights and televisions when a guest leaves their room, thus reducing energy consumption by nearly 20 percent.
The Gaia Napa Valley Hotel, a 135-room eco-resort located on four acres of land at the entrance to Napa Valley wine country, plans to take the green concept to luxurious new heights, offering a full menu of spa and salon treatments using only all-natural products. Freeman says that there’s no other hotel like it in the area, especially one that offers such high quality standards and meeting space. Hotel Gaia has 4,200 square feet of meeting space that can accommodate up to 300 people, she adds, and our meeting space is beautiful.
California Green Hotels
Orchard Garden Hotel (projected to pen Nov. 15)
466 Bush St., San Francisco
1+888-717-2881
Gaia Napa Valley Hotel
3600 Broadway (Hwy. 29)
American Canyon, CA
1+888-798-3777
