The Alaska Contractor - Summer 2008

Anchorage residents and visitors can’t help but notice the
new JL Tower – 3800 Centerpoint Drive – especially at
night.
The new, 14-story building, owned by developer JL
Properties, stands out from other Anchorage office complexes
as the first, multi-story commercial “green” building
in Alaska.
Leonard Hyde, JL Properties partner, said the idea was to
build a large LEED-certified project to show that building to
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards
makes economic sense for Alaska’s private sector.
Hyde said the company has used LEED standards on
other projects, such as the National Park Service Alaska Region
building downtown, but this is the first time it has had
New JL Tower
lights the night
By Ginger Cooley
a private sector project and had it LEED certified.
“Our projects need to make economic sense,” he said.
“We’ve shown through this project that it is possible.”
Tenants also were willing to pay a slight premium to
lease commercial space in JL Tower, Hyde said. The building
was fully leased before it opened, he said.
“From an aesthetic and an environmental standard we
tried to go beyond what is typical in Anchorage,” Hyde said.
Inside, visitors will see that commitment in the form of
$300,000 in public art, he said.
Outside, it’s the approximately 150 LED lights that
bathe the building’s top four floors in color that catch
the eye and make it a new landmark in the Anchorage
skyline.