Built Smart Program (Seattle - United States of America)

Seattle is a port city in the state of Washington, USA. It is the most populous and most densely populated city in that state, with a population of approximately 650.000 people. Seattle is frequently referred as one of the smartest cities in the country. It is very well ranked in the smart economy and smart government domains. The city is also recognized for promoting sustainable development, fostering start-ups, and attracting entrepreneurial talent.

The Built Smart Program, managed by Seattle City Light, is a set of standards for the building industry to construct sustainable buildings and it constitutes the state’s building code for energy efficiency and comfort. Built Smart aims to guide the design and conception of green, healthy, and comfortable buildings, which should provide resource conservation and maximum cost-efficient comfort. The Built Smart certification guarantees that the buildings meet the requirements of the standards.

This initiative is innovative because of its regulatory aspect, and Seattle advocates that the creation of regulations is the key to building green buildings. The development of mandatory policies could be an efficient tool to accelerate smart city implementations.

There are some risks associated with this program, namely the excess of bureaucracy, the fact that the incentives may be insufficient to promote the best practices and the possible increase in the final price of construction. But the initiative’s innovative character and the environmental culture it creates are of the utmost value.