Comments on: Helios House = bp, aka British Petroleum

By: Mitch E.

Mitch E. — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 22:38:33 +0000

I live near this nifty piece of architecture that bills itself as “a little better”. The emphasis really is on the word “little”. I was a frequent customer of the Thrifty gas that used to occupy the same spot. When they closed down the Thrifty gas to construct the new bp I was excited, thinking that the future of alternative fuel stations was finally coming to L.A. the epicenter of the automobile. Being located in the middle of the ultra-chic Westside I thought what a bold statement from one of the worlds largest oil companies. Wrong! As far as I know there are no bp branded stations in the greater Los Angeles area, so this really peaked my interest, the future is hear I thought. Now I will certainly be looking into a Flexfuel, ethanol, biodeisel, car for my next vehicle purchase, maybe even a hydrogen car or car that I could swap in and out a standardized electric battery. Nope, just regular gasoline not even diesel. They wasted an opportunity and gave us the same thing just packaged differently. What a slap in the face as if to say, we recognize the global need for improving energy efficiency but we are not really interested in that, we just want the same antiquated products to look prettier and we want you to “feel” better about using them. I don’t buy my gas from that station in protest, I buy it at the Exxon across the street. A gas station that looks like a Frank Geary inspired H.R. Pufinstuff titanium tree house complete with magic mushroom mood lights, what a waste of talent and money. Save the big bp marketing dollars and build us the next generation of fueling stations with real alternative fuels next time. On a recent trip to Oregon I stumbled upon a real futuristic fueling station with all different grades of ethanol and biodiesel, It also had a real “living roof” on the store part and solar panels on the fuel canopy, organic self serve soda fountain and an array of locally made sustainable foodstuffs and other green products. How hard could it really be to build such a thing? Check out http://www.sqbiofuels.com/ . I call that “a little better” not just a little more colorful.

By: Olivia

Olivia — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 01:33:24 +0000

I like how the billboard behind the building says “a little better.” (You can see it if you go to the webiste in reply #12)

I think that BP knows that pushing petrol out of a eco-friendly building is only “a little better.” But they are a company that makes a lot of money selling oil, so they arn’t just going to pull out of that business all of the sudden. Anyone who knows anything about the state of the environment knows that mankind is going to have to wean itself off of oil to survive (among many other changes), but it isn’t going to happen overnight. I hope that BP is at least trying to move in that direction.

And about biofuels…there are so many better things we should be pushing for. Most biofuel is not much better than gasoline.

By: lex

lex — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 12:58:30 +0000

I applaud their efforts but feel it is necessary that they offer biofuels in order to deliver a truly consistent message.

By: Siel

Siel — Fri, 09 Mar 2007 06:18:44 +0000

I agree — It’s not overnight. Still, sometimes I get the impression that I’m supposed to clap wildly whenever any oil dude puts a soda can in the recycling bin. With great power comes great responsibility, no?

By: Hopeful

Hopeful — Thu, 08 Mar 2007 20:21:56 +0000

Sorry, it’s http://www.thegreencurve.com

And I was referring to a start in the right direction – a more environmentally aware and eco-friendly way of life! These types of changes do not happen overnight :)

By: Siel

Siel — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 22:42:29 +0000

Hey Hopeful — Your link doesn’t work. But was wondering if you might be more specific — A start to what?

By: Hopeful

Hopeful — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 21:50:49 +0000

For more information, please visit http://thegreencurve.com

Also, please remember, it’s just a start! Change has to start somewhere.

By: Randy Inglis

Randy Inglis — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 20:21:52 +0000

I am a contractor working on this project and understand that this station is the beginning of things to change not just pumping petro based products. It is capable of doing alot more enviro friendly things than any other station I have been associated with. Also the building is very asthetic for a gas station.

By: don hosek

don hosek — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 21:20:01 +0000

In Chicago, BP has a gas station which gets some (all?) of its electricity from solar panels. It’s on La Salle Street just north of the mega-McDonald’s.

Between not driving much any more, and driving only short distances when I do drive, I may be able to get my next tank of gas at the new BP station when it opens (it also doesn’t hurt that it’s just a couple blocks away).

By: Siel

Siel — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 04:52:54 +0000

Let me make it clear that I DO think that bp is one of the better oil companies (I never, ever buy from Exxon, as I note in my monthly de-car-ing updates). I'm all for bp making solar cells. But I still think that marketing a gas station as green's oxymoronic. A gas station's exactly the part of bp that hasn't gone beyond petroleum.