The new retail/restaurant concept, Hot Italian, on the corner of Q and 16th Streets, is embracing green ideology in its entirety, completely renovating an old, vacated retail space with a sleek new design that Mother Nature would be proud of.

Andrea Lepore, co-owner of Hot Italian, had the environment in the front of her mind when she first had the idea for Hot Italian. The reason is simple. "I think the environment is important to everyone,” she says. “Especially when you're in a space where you're eating, drinking, and relaxing. We wanted to create a restaurant that offered healthy food, but was also healthy to be in."

Lepore decided to pursue a Leaders in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for the space. LEED is a rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council that gives a strict set of standards for environmentally sustainable construction. The system is based on a point system that ranges from 26-69 points. The building can receive a rating of 'certified' (26-32), 'silver' (33-38), 'gold' (39-51), or 'platinum' (52-69). Hot Italian is currently awaiting its accreditation rating, and once certified, it will be the first retail or restaurant building in Sacramento to achieve a LEED rating.

Several aspects of construction are considered in the certification process, including low-flow faucets and toilets, solar water-heating and tube lighting, ENERGY STAR appliances, recycled building materials for everything from the floor to the furniture, plenty of two-wheel parking, and many others. Lepore has worked with her general contractor and her architect to follow these guidelines to the highest standards.

When asked why she chose to pursue the certification, Lepore answered, "I’m competitive by nature. So if we were going to basically rebuild a building, I wanted to do it right and have a real, achievable goal."

John Johnson worked as the general contractor on the project. This was his first LEED construction and he said there was no additional difficulty in the 'green' nature of the project. "It was a learning process in following the paperwork and knowing which bouncing ball to follow to get through the process," he said, but with the guidance of the green building consultant, a required aspect of LEED, everything moved smoothly.

Edward Mojica, from Mojica Architecture Studio, was the architect on this project. He shares Johnson's sentiments and stated that, "the most difficult part was convincing the neighborhood and the city that this was the right project to happen at this location."

There is a statement on the menu, "Tutto e Possible" which means, “anything is possible.” That belief helped Lepore work through delays in the LEED process to get Hot Italian where it is today. She appears to have achieved the restaurant’s goal: to inspire, make a difference, and create better neighborhoods. The result can be seen at the once-dilapidated corner of 16th and Q Streets, where the restaurant has been serving its traditional pizza and gelato as well as other treats since February 14.