April 16, 2009 – Drivers near Marina City will see a lot of green this fall when they park at a new environmentally-friendly ramp currently under construction.

Greenway Self-Park will be an 11-story structure with room for 715 vehicles, 24 bicycles, and 14,800 square feet of retail space.

It will also have a landscaped “green roof” with pool, deck, and jogging trail. Landscaping will be irrigated from rain water collected in holding tanks. Wind turbines and solar panels will generate electricity for the building. There will be charging stations for electric cars, battery recycling stations, and environmental messages displayed in the lobbies.

(Above) Rendering of Greenway Self-Park, an environmentally-friendly parking and retail structure being built near Marina City. This is a view looking northeast with Kinzie Street at right. (Click on image to view larger version.)

Making use of recycled building materials, Bovis Lend Lease is constructing the ramp on the northeast corner of Clark and Kinzie Streets, two blocks from Marina City.

The ramp will offer discounts for hybrid electric vehicles. It will also be a location for Zipcar, the car sharing service.

Recent development near Marina City, including the construction of three major office buildings, has eliminated more than 1,000 parking spaces, according to Friedman Properties, developer of the 27,300 square foot structure.

“The River North market is in dire need of additional parking spaces,” reads the project’s executive summary.

James Weiss, Director of Asset Management for Friedman, says no tenants have been signed yet but the project is on schedule to open in September.