Green makeovers of office buildings

West-facing, 32^nd floor, and green; sustainability and eco-friendly are becoming a major selling qualities for commercial leases.

In order to make spaces more attractive, many buildings are undergoing green retrofits. This trend has become popular, not only because of positive effects on the environment, but also because it saves tenants money.

Hey, times are tight – why not look for ways to save?

In Toronto, the TD Centre will undergo renovations that will eventually help them apply for LEED status. They’re doing this not for philanthropy; they believe this will make them more competitive in the leasing market. In a city with an 8.4% vacancy rate, that makes sense.

This isn’t an isolated case.  Avison Young reports that most tenants are looking to reduce costs in any way they can. Rather than constructing new buildings, a lot of the focus in Toronto is to retrofit older buildings with more efficient features.

As a result, spaces in green buildings rarely stay vacant for long. The tenant is happy to save money; the owner is happy to be making money again, and the environment is “happy” too; everybody wins.

In British Columbia, a partnership between B.C. Hydro, the Ministry of Energy and BOMA are prepared to make 17,000 commercial buildings more energy efficient. B.C. wants to see a 1/3 reduction of greenhouse gasses by 2020.

Projects like this are a cornerstone of the plan. Because commercial buildings make up about 5% of B.C.’s emissions, the goal is to reduce energy demand by 9% per square meter of commercial space.

Trends don’t always last, but wanting to spend less and make more money is hardly a “trend.” The green retrofit trend is expected to gain momentum as those with buying and leasing power demand lower costs and thus, more eco-friendly action.