Core and Shell

Hi David, the most common example of C&S is a speculative office building - owner designs and builds the base building, but the use and design of the tenant spaces is not known until tenants sign leases and move in. So the basic purpose of LEED-CS is to certify the building based on what the owner does control without considering tenant spaces. That's why the 50% limit exists, because buildings where the interior spaces ARE part of the project scope need to account for those spaces. It doesn't mean the rest of the building is unoccupied, just that the owner does not directly control the rest of the building. 

We have a building undergoing a major renovation that is retroactively seeking LEED Core & Shell v4.1. The 1st floor and Mezzanine are not part of the renovation are both already occupied and operated as retail spaces.  The upper floors, all office, seperately managed, are included in the scope of the consutruction, but under seperate permits for seperate phases of the development.  For example, the 4th floor was a spec suite that is being built our seperately, all other floors are being built out as cold shells with HVAC capped at each floor.  The building has upgraded all of its electrical, plumbing and mechanical infrastructure serving the office floors.  The square footage of the office portion exceeds 60% of the total building area.  Commissioning has not yet been completed, and there is no electrical service to the building at this time, but equipment has already been installed. My questions: 

• Is Core & Shell appropriate with a project phased into multiple permits?
• Is Core & Shell still a realistic expectation with the project approaching substantial completion? 
• Can we certify a portion of the building as Core & Shell, avoiding the existing retail portion?

Any help anyone can offer would be greatly appreicated!