Near the end of last year, we earned a Four Green Globes for Existing Buildings rating from the Green Building Initiative\u00ae for achievements in sustainable operations at our Crown Plaza building. This was our fourth Green Globes award since 2010, and our second for Crown Plaza.<\/p>\n
The announcement of green building certifications doesn\u2019t get as much fanfare these days, especially here in the Northwest, as sustainable building and management practices have become more standard in the community.<\/p>\n
Tenants seek green features<\/em> Green Globes is a user-friendly alternative to the US Green Building Council\u2019s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. It can be implemented at a significantly lower cost for the building owner. We chose this path over LEED as we were looking for a program that would help us benchmark our performance against our goals. Crown Plaza is a perfect example of helping us document and track our progress. Our initial Green Globes rating was a Three Globes award, and we improved that to a Four Globes rating.<\/p>\n Built in the 1970s, Crown Plaza stands at more than 293,000 square feet and 11 stories tall. Older buildings were not designed with energy efficiency mindfulness. This makes them a challenge; we\u2019ve had to be tireless in our search to find savings.<\/p>\n To earn the Four Green Globes rating, we\u2019ve invested in in the latest LED lighting technology, including controls to dim the lights and turn the lights off when not needed. Daylighting strategies capitalize on natural light, allowing us to leave lights off until later in the day. We purchase clean energy through our utility, Portland General Electric, to offset energy costs, and we require the use of green building cleaning products throughout the property. Tenants have access to a comprehensive free recycling program to reduce building waste, and we\u2019ve dedicated a secured bike storage area to make it easy for tenants to find alternate ways to commute to work. These are just a few of the many actions we\u2019ve taken to conserve energy and water, work on emissions and indoor air quality, and improve resource management.<\/p>\n
\nSo, is the bloom off the rose or is going green still important in commercial real estate? We believe it is more relevant and important than ever. Where properties with green features were once the exception, they\u2019re now commonplace. Most importantly, green features are no longer a wish-list item for current and prospective tenants; they expect properties to be environmentally-friendly.<\/p>\nBenchmarking performance<\/em><\/h4>\n
Energy-efficiency benefits everyone<\/em><\/h4>\n