News
Simcoe Place awarded prestigious LEEDŽ Gold Certification
April 22, 2010 (Toronto, ON) – The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited is pleased to announce that Simcoe Place, it’s 30-storey office tower in downtown Toronto, has been awarded LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certification for Existing Buildings in the Operations and Maintenance category. Established by the U.S. Green Building Council, and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute, LEED is North America’s preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.
“Achieving LEED Gold Certification at Simcoe Place is a major milestone that we are all quite proud of,” said Patricia Caplan, General Manager at Simcoe Place. “It was an arduous year-long process, but it was worth all of the hard work. With the support and collaboration of our tenants and our owners, we were determined to meet the gold standard and demonstrate our commitment to sustainability through our actions.”
While Simcoe Place is 98 per cent leased, Caplan admits that, “In an increasingly competitive office tower marketplace, by greening our real estate we are making a long term investment that we know will enhance energy efficiencies, reduce operating costs, minimize our impact on city power and save our tenants money as well.”
The outcome of the LEED process and subsequent green retrofit is that Simcoe Place is among the first in its class of Canadian office towers and hopes that other leading property owners and managers will follow their lead. It’s both the smart thing and the right thing to do.
In order to achieve LEED Gold EB: OM Certification, Simcoe Place had to meet strict, measurable benchmarks and earn credits in five categories under the LEED–EB rating system.
These include:
Sustainable sites – the property must be using site management techniques that mitigate some of the negative effects buildings have on local environments;
Water efficiency – the property must have strategies and technologies in place that reduce the amount of potable water consumed in buildings;
Energy & Atmosphere – the property must address specific environmental concerns relating to building energy consumption, energy monitoring, energy efficiency measures and emissions;
Materials & Resources – the property must prove they are developing, implementing and documenting policies that describe responsible procurement practices and waste management strategies; and
Indoor Environmental Quality – the property must address indoor air quality issues with the aim of enhancing the indoor environment and optimizing interior spaces for building occupants.
GREEN AT WORK™
In addition to achieving LEED-EB: OM certification, Simcoe Place takes part in Cadillac Fairview’s national sustainability program, known as GREEN AT WORK™. This proprietary program is national in scope; implemented at all properties and sets operational benchmarks to reduce energy consumption and waste, improve environmental protection, encourages sustainable procurement and ongoing communication with key stakeholders. GREEN AT WORK™ supports Cadillac Fairview’s ongoing commitment to corporate social responsibility with the belief that by working with our tenants and customers we are “building sustainability together™.”
About Simcoe Place
Simcoe Place is a 30-storey office tower located on Front Street in the heart of downtown Toronto. It consists of 750,000 square feet of office space, 48,000 square feet of retail space, including a 650- seat food court, a three level underground parking garage and a daycare. For more information, please visit simcoeplace.ca.
About Cadillac Fairview
The Cadillac Fairview Corporation Limited is one of North America's largest investors, owners and managers of commercial real estate. For more than 50 years Cadillac Fairview has been leading the way in commercial real estate with innovative design, development and management.
Cadillac Fairview focuses on developing and managing high quality office properties and regional shopping centres in Canada and the United States, as well as international investments in real estate companies and investment funds. With a portfolio valued at more than $17 billion and nearly 50 million square feet of leasable space, Cadillac Fairview and its affiliates own and manage 84 properties across North America, including some of Canada's landmark developments, such as Toronto-Dominion Centre, Toronto Eaton Centre, Pacific Centre and Chinook Centre.
Cadillac Fairview is wholly-owned by the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan, which invests to secure the retirement income of 289,000 active and retired teachers in Ontario. For more information, please visit us at cadillacfairview.com.