Beacon Capital Partners and Cassidy Turley Lead Process to Achieve LEED® Silver Certification for 10 Office Buildings in the DC Metro Area

WASHINGTON, June 27, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Beacon Capital Partners, LLC and Cassidy Turley announced today that ten office buildings owned by affiliates of Beacon Capital Partners, LLC have been awarded LEED® for Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance (LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M), established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI).  With a combined total of 2.5 million square feet of space, all ten buildings achieved LEED Silver certification.  LEED is the nation's preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings.

"With these additional buildings, we have achieved LEED certification for over 18 million square feet in our U.S. portfolio since 2008.  This has contributed to significant reductions in energy consumption at those properties, as well as a much reduced carbon footprint," stated Fred Seigel, President and Chief Operating Officer at Beacon Capital Partners.

"Beacon Capital Partners is leading the market with their commitment to sustainability and energy efficiency initiatives," commented Evan Tyroler, Vice President of Sustainability Services with Cassidy Turley.  "Cassidy Turley is proud that we were able to collaborate with Beacon Capital Partners and over 7,000 building occupants to achieve this exceptional accomplishment," he continued.

"The certification of this ten building portfolio shows that aggressive sustainability initiatives are not only possible but can leave a long lasting improvement to our communities and environment," commented William Grillo, Senior Managing Director with Cassidy Turley.  "This exciting and educational process would not have been possible without the tremendous efforts from the building occupants, Beacon Capital Partners and the onsite Cassidy Turley management and engineering teams," he continued.

LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M certification was achieved through the implementation of various sustainable strategies including energy and water efficiency as well as an enhanced recycling and waste diversion program.  By using less energy and water, LEED certified buildings save money for businesses and taxpayers, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to a healthier environment for employees, residents and the larger community.

"Beacon Capital Partners' ten new LEED certifications demonstrate tremendous green building leadership," said Rick Fedrizzi, President, CEO & Founding Chair, USGBC.  "The urgency of USGBC's mission has challenged the industry to move faster and reach further than ever before, and the certification of these buildings serves as a prime example of just how much we can accomplish."

Cassidy Turley handled the day-to-day project management required to achieve this significant milestone.  The buildings that achieved LEED Silver certification in Washington, DC include Lafayette Centre One, Two, and Three, located in the Central Business District; as well as Liberty Place, located in the East End submarket.  The Silver Certified buildings in Virginia include John Marshall III and EJ Randolph II in McLean, VA; American Center East and American Center West in Vienna, VA; 11111 Sunset Hills Road in Reston, VA; and The Zachary Taylor Building in Arlington, VA.  LEED Silver certification of these buildings was based on modifications to the operations and maintenance procedures that positively impacted the projects themselves and the broader community.  These features include:

• Full building retro-commissioning for select buildings
• Implementation of select energy conservation measures that reduced overall energy consumption across the portfolio
• Energy audits for all buildings
• Eight of the ten buildings have been awarded the Environmental Protection Agency's prestigious ENERGY STAR, the national symbol for superior energy efficiency and environmental protection
• Participation in a demand response program that helps reduce the peak demand on the utility grid, benefitting utility providers, the community and the environment
• An electronic recycling event that has diverted over 10,000 pounds of  printers, batteries, monitors and other electronic equipment from the main waste stream

About U.S. Green Building Council

The Washington, D.C.-based U.S. Green Building Council is committed to a prosperous and sustainable future for our nation through cost-efficient and energy-saving green buildings. With a community comprising 80 local affiliates, more than 18,000 member companies and organizations, and more than 155,000 LEED Professional Credential holders, USGBC is the driving force of an industry that is projected to contribute $554 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product from 2009-2013. USGBC leads an unlikely diverse constituency of builders and environmentalists, corporations and nonprofit organizations, elected officials and concerned citizens, and teachers and students.  Buildings in the United States are responsible for 39% of CO2 emissions, 40% of energy consumption, 13% water consumption and 15% of GDP per year, making green building a source of significant economic and environmental opportunity. Greater building efficiency can meet 85% of future U.S. demand for energy, and a national commitment to green building has the potential to generate 2.5 million American jobs.

About LEED

The U.S. Green Building Council's LEED green building certification system is the foremost program for the design, construction and operation of green buildings. Over 32,000 projects are currently participating in the commercial and institutional LEED rating systems, comprising over 9.6 billion square feet of construction space in all 50 states and 114 countries.  By using less energy, LEED-certified buildings save money for families, businesses and taxpayers; reduce greenhouse gas emissions; and contribute to a healthier environment for residents, workers and the larger community.

USGBC was co-founded by current President and CEO Rick Fedrizzi, who spent 25 years as a Fortune 500 executive. Under his 15-year leadership, the organization has become the preeminent green building, membership, policy, standards, influential, education and research organization in the nation.  For more information, visit www.usgbc.org.

About Cassidy Turley

Cassidy Turley is a leading commercial real estate services provider with 3,000 professionals in 60 offices nationwide. The company represents a wide range of clients—from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies, from local non-profits to major institutions.  The firm completed transactions valued at $17 billion in 2010, manages 430 million square feet on behalf of private, institutional and corporate clients and supports over 25,000 domestic corporate services locations. Cassidy Turley serves owners, investors and occupiers with a full spectrum of integrated commercial real estate services—including capital markets, tenant representation, corporate services, project leasing, property management, project and development services, and research and consulting. In 2010, the firm enhanced its global service delivery outside of North America through its partnership with GVA. Please visit www.cassidyturley.com for more information about Cassidy Turley.

SOURCE Cassidy Turley