IMT and DOE's Green Lease Leaders Honored at the 2017 Better Buildings Summit

WASHINGTON, May 15, 2017 /PRNewswire-iReach/ -- Today, the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) and the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Better Buildings Alliance announced the 2017 Green Lease Leaders at the Better Buildings Summit in Washington, D.C., a conference which brings together leaders in the public and private sectors to showcase actionable energy solutions and share major trends and opportunities for greater energy and water efficiency in buildings. This year's Green Lease Leader portfolios cover nearly 200 million square feet (sq. ft.) of floorspace in North America, bringing the cumulative floor area of all Green Lease Leaders to over 1.3 billion sq. ft.

"Green Lease Leaders continues to lay the foundation for a new standard of practice where tenants and landlords regularly work together to create win-win solutions to advance building energy efficiency and sustainability," said Jason Hartke, Program Manager of Commercial Buildings Integration at DOE. "Award winners are showing that, through greater collaboration, they are able to realize energy savings, reduce occupancy costs, increase tenant retention, and improve business. We commend the awardees for their leadership this year and their ongoing commitment to these proven energy-saving strategies."

Green Lease Leaders, now in its fourth year, was established by IMT and the Better Buildings Alliance to set the bar for what constitutes a green or "energy-aligned" lease, and to recognize pioneering property owners and tenants who add energy and water-saving clauses to their leases that drive high performance in commercial, retail, and industrial buildings. IMT estimates that green leases can help reduce utility bills by up to $0.51 per square foot (11-22 percent) in U.S. office buildings alone, and if all leased office buildings executed green leases, the market could save over $3 billion in annual cost savings. Clauses in green leases range from energy management best practices for building systems to requirements concerning tenant spaces such as submetering of utility data and reducing plug loads with advanced power strips and ENERGY STAR equipment.

New this year, IMT and the Better Buildings Alliance recognized California for becoming the first state to make green leasing a statewide policy for government-leased buildings. In addition, Rocky Mountain Institute is receiving the designation for signing the first net-zero lease for any multitenant development of its size, and the real estate investment trust Welltower is the first Green Lease Leader to work in the healthcare sector. 

"Welltower recognizes that tenant engagement is crucial to achieve success in reducing the energy and water intensity in the buildings they manage," said Karen Darcangelo, senior sustainability manager for Welltower. "Most medical office buildings are high users of energy with Ambulatory Surgery Centers, MRI equipment, and radiation bunkers, just to name a few. Securing commitments through our green lease language allows us to bring more awareness to our tenants, align sustainability initiatives so that both parties benefit from adopting efficiency measures, and to measure success against agreed-upon goals." 

The 2016 Green Lease Leaders are:

Landlord/Tenant Recognition

• Boston Properties
• California Department of General Services
• Principal Real Estate Investors
• Rocky Mountain Institute
• Washington REIT
• Welltower

Team Transaction Recognition

• TD Bank, with CBRE, and OPTrust
• Tower Companies, with NIKA

"As more building owners and corporations recognize the strong business case for investing in energy efficiency, they can look to the multitude of Green Lease Leader landlords and tenants for examples of how to transform the leasing process into one that aligns incentives, locks in major energy cost savings for both parties, and raises their sustainability profiles in the real estate market," said IMT's executive director Cliff Majersik. "We are pleased to see such a diverse group of leaders this year who are utilizing green leases to overcome complex landlord-tenant engagement issues that too frequently stand in the way of bigger savings."

For the second year, Green Lease Leaders bestowed the Team Transaction award, which is given to groups of stakeholders who collaborate on an individual lease transaction to incorporate sustainability and energy management elements into the operations of a leased space. This award recognizes deals where all parties come together to push the boundaries of energy efficiency in leased commercial space.

For more information on the Green Lease Leaders program and this year's recipients, visit greenleaseleaders.com, and to learn more about the benefits of green leasing and landlord-tenant collaboration on sustainability, visit the Green Lease Library and the Landlord-Tenant Energy Partnership website.

ABOUT IMT: The Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) is a national nonprofit organization laser focused on increasing energy efficiency in buildings to save money, drive economic growth and job creation, reduce harmful pollution, and tackle climate change. IMT ignites greater investment in energy-efficient buildings through hands-on expert guidance, technical and market research, policy and program development and deployment, and promotion of best practices and knowledge exchange. IMT's efforts lead to important new policy outcomes, widespread changes in practice, and ultimately, lasting market shifts toward greater energy efficiency, with substantial benefits for the economy and the environment. For more information, visit imt.org and follow us on Twitter at @IMT_speaks.

ABOUT THE BETTER BUILDINGS ALLIANCE: The Better Buildings Alliance is a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) effort to promote energy efficiency in U.S. commercial buildings through collaboration with building owners, operators, and managers. Members of the Better Buildings Alliance commit to addressing energy efficiency needs in their buildings by setting energy savings goals, developing innovative energy efficiency resources, and adopting advanced cost-effective technologies and market practices.

Media Contact:Chris Potter, Institute for Market Transformation, 202-525-6883 x311, chris@imt.org

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SOURCE Institute for Market Transformation