Whenever there is construction boom, energy conservation can be forgotten or lost in the process. The thinking goes that building buildings will bring in more revenue than the money the owner is going to save by reducing utility costs.
Sometimes this thinking is hard to overcome because it can be correct; you can make more money than save money. High-efficiency energy applications are often perceived as being expensive and thus are value-engineered out in the early stages of program planning. Even today, LEED™ certification is assumed to cost more than if the project did not pursue this recognition. So much for "green design"!