When the $1 billion Bank of America Tower opens next year, it will be the greenest office building in the country, with rainwater-collection and clean-air systems projected to curb power use by 50%. Blessed by the Natural Resources Defense Council, it's the Dursts' fourth energy-efficient development, and the family has committed to building only green properties. This from a business started by Joseph Durst, who emigrated from Austria in 1915 with $3 to his name and managed to launch a bank and then shift to real estate. Today the operation is run by third- and fourth-generation descendants Douglas, Jody, Kristoffer, Alexander, and Helena, for whom a giant residential and retail center on Manhattan's far west side is named.
