First Washington, DC trophy office building awarded LEED Platinum certification

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by Shane Henson — April 11, 2012—Cassidy Turley, a commercial real estate services provider, recently announced that Terrell Place, owned by affiliates of Beacon Capital Partners and General Electric Pension Trust, has become Washington, DC’s first trophy office building to be awarded LEED Platinum certification for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance. LEED, established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), is the nation’s preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings.

The 522,000-square-foot (gross) multi-tenant project, located in DC’s central business district across from the Verizon Center, consists of three connected office buildings, including a redevelopment of the former Hecht Company department store, a five-story historical commercial building, and a new 11-story office tower. The project has three levels of underground parking, an 11-story glass atrium, a roof deck, and a fitness center.

The LEED Platinum certification of the building was based on modifications to the operations and maintenance procedures that positively impacted the building itself and the broader community, says Cassidy Turley. These features include:

  • The development of a comprehensive energy management program that included full building retro-commissioning, implementation of various energy conservation measures, and an on-going commissioning plan to ensure continued optimal building efficiency;
  • The offset of 100% of the building’s energy consumption by purchasing Renewable Energy Certificates (REC’s) and Carbon Offsets;
  • Certification under the federal Energy Star program; and
  • The use of alternatives to single-occupancy vehicles by more than 70% of building occupants when commuting, helping to reduce the overall carbon footprint of the building.

Over the past three years, Beacon Capital Partners has engaged Cassidy Turley’s Sustainability Services to oversee sustainability initiatives throughout their DC metro portfolio. This strategic partnership has led to the LEED certification of 13 multi-tenant office buildings, totaling more than 3.8 million square feet, with an additional two buildings currently underway, says the company. This has allowed for the integration of sustainability best practices throughout the local portfolio, contributing to a healthier environment for building tenants and the larger community.