Cosentino North America, a natural quartz surface manufacturer, supplier and installer, will be the first tenant in the building at 16750 Creek Bend Dr., in the 190-acre Lake Pointe Town Centre. Cosentino will take 50,000 sf on two floors in the seven-floor building for its regional headquarters, which is now located at 13124 Trinity Dr. in Stafford, TX. Details about lease length and consideration are still being hammered out, but word is Cosentino eventually plans to take over the entire building. Until that happens, the remaining space is being marketed for lease.

Lake Pointe developer Midway Cos. of Houston sought LEED pre-certification because Cosentino's parent, Prisma Properties LP of Spain, was adamant about going green. Acho Azuike, a Midway associate, points out that the building will be Cosentino's future regional headquarters so "it was extremely important for the owners to seek the LEED Platinum goal."

Azuike adds that pre-certification makes it more likely the building can obtain the LEED designation upon completion because it provides guidelines before ground breaks on a project. Without pre-certification, he says "we could have gotten the building finished, submitted it for certification and could have been told we missed a lot in the construction phase."

Jonathan Brinsden, executive vice president and COO for Midway, says pre-certification isn't necessarily a "must" for all developers who are thinking about applying for LEED certification. He explains pre-certification makes sense for owners and developers with a set building requirement in hand.

The Midway executives tell GlobeSt.com that development of a pre-certified platinum LEED certification can push expenses 18% to 20% above standard construction costs. However, the upside is many costs can be mitigated through grants. Vendors and suppliers also might be willing to donate systems or materials like flooring to cladding to become part of the project.

"There are not a lot of LEED Platinums out there, particularly in office development," Azuike points out. "Being part of a building like this is a good opportunity for these companies."

Houston-based Powers Brown Architecture designed the building and Hoar Construction of Birmingham, AL, is the general contractor. Bill Stone of Cushman & Wakefield of Texas Inc. is preleasing the project.