Shades of green

A 224,000-square-foot office building in Washington, D.C., 1800 K St., is the first in the world to earn certification through a new, more stringent LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) rating system.

In addition the building, owned by Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management and managed by Transwestern, is the second project worldwide to obtain any of the 21 rating system adaptations available under what is known as LEED v4.

The U.S. Green Building Council simultaneously awarded the Washington, D.C., structure with LEED Gold certification for existing buildings, operations and maintenance through v2009, the most recent rating system before the creation of LEED v4.

Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management pursued the LEED certifications for 1800 K St. as part of a market-driven portfolio improvement program. Built in 1970, the building houses several tenants, including the Educational Testing Service and Wells Fargo Bank.

”With the launch of LEED v4, we are seeing a number of leading organizations certifying their new and existing buildings to LEED v4, upping their already high standards of performance,” Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chair of the U.S. Green Building Council, said in a statement.

Transwestern’s sustainability services team oversaw the certification process of 1800 K St., directing the on-site property management team.
“This is a tremendous achievement for Transwestern,” said Allan Skodowski, the company’s managing senior vice president and director of LEED and sustainability services. “… The new LEED v4 rating system holds buildings to higher standards, and we are excited to see how much building sustainability improves with these new guidelines.”

The 1800 K St. building earned 64 points in the LEED v2009 and 52 points in the newer v4 system. Additional improvements at the property include:

•   Upgrading all plumbing fixtures to meet WaterSense requirements;

•   Achieving an ENERGY STAR rating of 81;

•   Offsetting 27 percent of electrical usage with sustainable power;

•   Recycling 61 percent of office waste.