(SAN FRANCISCO) – The San Francisco office of Hines, the international real estate firm, announced today that 75 Hawthorne at Hawthorne Plaza is the first multi-tenant office building in San Francisco to receive Gold certification under the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED® for Existing Buildings rating system.
75 Hawthorne is a 20-story Class A office building that is owned and managed by Hines.
Hines Senior Vice President Paul Paradis said, “With limited new development, the ‘greening’ of existing building stock represents an enormous opportunity.
Achieving the Gold rating is exciting for our management and engineering team because it proves that their daily work to make the building better for its tenants, also improves the environment.”
The property is 84 percent leased with 76 percent of the space occupied by the U.S. Federal Government, including the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Region IX Headquarters, which leases approximately 265,000 square feet.
Hines Senior Vice President Norm Spencer added, “The tenants at Hawthorne Plaza place a high priority on sustainability and strongly support our efforts to green the building.”
Hines, in partnership with RREEF, acquired the property in 2007 and immediately introduced a number of programs that continue to reduce energy consumption and promote a healthier tenant work environment.
Some of those initiatives include participation in PG&E’s Demand Response Program, retrofitting lights and lighting fixtures, implementing a comprehensive ‘Green Cleaning’ program (Green-seal cleaning products, microfiber equipment and HEPA filter vacuums), reducing water demand by installing low-flow restroom fixtures and starting a building-wide recycling and composting program that will divert approximately 215 tons from the landfill in 2009.
In addition to the measures Hines implemented, the property inherently possesses several green characteristics such as mechanical systems that allow for 100 percent outside air intake, proximity to public transit and floor plate depths that allow significant natural light penetration.
75 Hawthorne is also ENERGY STAR® labeled by the EPA.
Within 18 months of acquiring the property, Hines achieved a score of 98 putting it in the top three percent of all commercial office buildings in energy performance.
As a result, the building annually saves $2.37 per square foot and achieves greenhouse gas reductions equivalent to removing 360 passenger vehicles from the road.
In addition to the primary tower 75 Hawthorne, the adjacent five-story 95 Hawthorne rounds out the Hawthorne Plaza complex which offers popular amenities including childcare and a fitness center.
Hines is a leader in the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEEDprogram and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR program.
The firm has more than 98 projects, representing approximately 65 million square feet that have been certified, pre-certified or registered under the various LEED programs.
Hines has also labelled more than 130 buildings, representing approximately 76 million square feet, in the ENERGY STAR program.
Hines is a privately owned real estate firm involved in real estate investment, development and property management worldwide. The firm’s historical and current portfolio of projects that are underway, completed, acquired and managed for third parties includes more than 1,100 properties representing approximately 454 million square feet of office, residential, mixed-use, industrial, hotel, medical and sports facilities, as well as large, master-planned communities and land developments.
With offices in more than 100 cities in 17 countries, and controlled assets valued at approximately $25.8 billion, Hines is one of the largest sustainable real estate organizations in the world. Visit www.hines.com for more information.
To learn more about sustainability at Hines, visit www.hines.com/sustainability.