The recently expanded Arlington Village Shops in Arlington Heights has become the first core and shell LEED-certified retail building in Massachusetts, according to developer Bierbrier Development Inc.

Arlington Village Shops is a 25,000-square-foot urban retail center, with a 9,000-square-foot addition designed by Prellwitz Chilinski Assoc., a Cambridge-based architectural firm. The new building is 26 percent more energy efficient and will use 40 percent less water. In addition, 82 percent of all construction debris was diverted from landfill and 20 percent of the buildings materials by cost were made from recycled content. Also, all interior materials used in the building were low Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) emitting materials.

"We’re also proud of the fact that our application was the second in the entire United States for the core and shell LEED certification for a retail property, awarded for high performance green buildings by the U.S. Green Building Council," said Len Bierbrier, president of Bierbrier Development. "At Bierbrier Development, we’re fully committed to being on the cutting edge of green development and proud to have been a ‘first mover’ at this inflection point in shopping center development industry."

Major tenants at the shopping center include Unleashed by PETCO, Panera Bread and The Meat House.