This table shows the 2014 economic contributions to the U.S. Economy from the development of commercial real estate buildings.

What segment of the U.S. economy “popped up” around 2009 and has grown into an $8 billion industry with a 16 percent annual growth rate, according to the Alexander Babbage Inc. market research firm? The answer is pop-up businesses, also known as “temporary retail.”

Developers, property owners and tenants are becoming more sophisticated about waste disposal. No longer content to simply recycle, many are exploring and implementing new ways to reduce the amount of waste they send to landfills. It is becoming apparent that composting is a viable way to enhance a company culture of reuse, reduce waste hauling costs and attain higher LEED scores.

Many commercial real estate professionals are starting to realize that water is a precious resource and that we have to treat it as such. Those of us who design and build buildings need to reconsider “the way we’ve always done things” and stop thinking of water as an endless resource that we can continue to use wastefully.

Imagine solar panels, not on rooftops, but as a surface for parking lots, driveways, roads, bike trails and, eventually, even highways. Then imagine integrating those solar panels with microprocessors and LED lights so they can be programmed to delineate driving lanes, parking spaces, crosswalks and more.

Technological innovation is transforming parking. In just a few short years, we have seen the development of a wide range of new parking technologies.

An assortment of brief facts and figures about new and noteworthy development projects, transactions and trends.