The New Buildings Institute recently came out with its latest list of Verified Zero Energy Buildings, and Chicago had a favorable showing, contributing three to the ranks.

1. Walgreens Evanston Store

Location: Evanston, IL

Building Type: Retail

Size: 14k SF

Cool Energy Features: Two wind turbines, nearly 850 solar panels and a geothermal system burrowed 550 feet into the ground, power this store.

2. Harmony House for Cats Chicago

Location: Chicago, IL

Building Type: Other

Size: 7,095 SF

Cool Energy Features: 14 geothermal wells, 20 solar thermal panels, plus a solar photovoltaic system of 96 panels heat and cool the building.

3. Electrical and Computer Engineering Building, University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign

Location: Urbana/Champaign, IL

Building Type: Higher education

Size: 250k SF

Cool Energy Features: An array of photovoltaic cells adds to a chilled beam system to cool and heat the classroom tower.