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PARKWAY green
SUSTAINABILITY NEWSLETTER | ISSUE 3.0
Welcome to Issue #3 of Parkway's quarterly Sustainability Newsletter. This newsletter contains many updates on Parkway's major sustainability programs and achievements in 2014 and 2015. We are on target to meet or exceed all of our LEED, sustainability, energy efficiency, and ENERGY STAR benchmarking goals for 2015. Join us in reflecting upon a year of remarkable progress toward true sustainability for the built environment.
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PARKWAY'S 2014 SUSTAINABILITY REPORT IS RELEASED
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In July, we released Parkway's Annual Sustainability Report for the 2014 calendar year. This report summarizes Parkway's existing sustainability programs, policies, operational procedures, and presents an update on Parkway’s progress in 2014 toward achieving our long-term sustainability goals. This report is focused on sustainability efforts for Parkway's owned assets, and it is organized around three main categories: Responsible Investment, Sustainable Operations, and Stakeholder Engagement.
For more details about Parkway's Sustainability mission, goals and values, visit www.pky.com/sustainability.
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CORPORATE PERFORMANCE UPDATE: PARKWAY RANKED 5TH GREENEST OFFICE PORTFOLIO IN THE U.S.
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On July 1, 2015, Parkway again participated in the annual Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) survey using portfolio-wide sustainability data for the calendar year 2014. On September 1, 2015, the results were released and Parkway was recognized as the 5th greenest office portfolio in the U.S. while also earning a "Green Star" for strong performance in the top quartile across all categories showing great improvement from previous years. These results confirm Parkway's growth as an industry leader in sustainability among U.S. office portfolios. Congratulations to everyone in the Parkway organization who contributed to this great achievement!
In addition to participating in this year's GRESB survey, Parkway also reported to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) for the second year. CDP uses measurement, transparency, and accountability to drive positive change in the in the world of business and works with institutional investors to help reveal risk in their portfolios.
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LEED CERTIFICATION UPDATES
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The following Parkway buildings have recently completed their LEED EB recertifications in late 2014 and early 2015:
- Cal/EPA: Platinum Recertification
- US Airways Headquarters: Gold Recertification
- San Felipe Plaza: Silver Recertification
The following LEED EB certified buildings have recently submitted their applications for LEED EB recertification in 2015 and their applications are currently under review:
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- 300 West 6th Street: Silver Recertification *
- City West Place 1: Silver Recertification
- City West Place 4: Basic Recertification
- Frost Bank Tower: Gold Recertification *
- One American Center: Silver Recertification *
- One Congress Plaza: Basic Recertification
- San Jacinto Center: Silver Recertification
Parkway is also committed to expanding the total number of LEED EB certified buildings in the portfolio for 2015! The buildings below are planning to submit their first LEED EB applications before the end of this year:
- Phoenix Tower: Recertification
- NASCAR Plaza: Initial Certification
- Hearst Tower: Initial Certification
- Courvoisier Centre I & II: Initial Certification
- One Orlando Centre: Initial Certification
* In November 2014, Parkway sold its interest in 300 West Sixth Street, Frost Bank Tower, and One American Center, and it continues to provide third party management services for these assets.
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PARKWAY TEAM RECOGNIZED: 2015 EBIE AWARDS
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Parkway’s Frost Bank Tower in Austin, Texas, was the proud recipient of the 2015 EBie award in the “It Takes a Village” category. This award was based on the building's energy and environmental performance in 2014. The building’s Property Manager, Sammie Baker, accepted the award on behalf of Parkway* at the annual EBie Awards Gala in New York City.
* In November 2014, Parkway sold its interest in Frost Bank Tower and it continues to provide third party management services for this asset.
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT: COURVOISIER CENTRE
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Throughout 2013 and 2014, the two buildings at Courvoisier Centre were completely renovated, re-sealed, and retrofitted for improved energy efficiency. Among other capital projects, Courvoisier Centre particularly benefited from a chiller replacement and optimization project which effectively linked the HVAC systems of the two buildings seasonally to maximize their combined energy efficiency. As a result, Courvoisier Centre's combined energy consumption decreased by 9.9% from 2013 to 2014 (saving enough power to run 45 average U.S. homes for a year). Courvoisier Centre is now one of the most energy-efficient buildings in the Parkway portfolio.
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Tenants typically account for roughly 70% of any building’s energy consumption. As property owners and managers it is important to work together toward creating more efficient, healthy and productive spaces to work.
Some of our key Tenant Engagement programs include a Green Office Guide, Green Tenant Improvement guide, Earth Day Activities, Recycling, Green Cleaning, Indoor Air Quality assessments, E-Waste Drives, Education and much more.
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LEED v4 GREEN ASSOCIATE TRAINING
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Many real estate companies are being asked to report the number of LEED Accredited professionals as a indication of their commitment to sustainability. As such LEED v4 Green Associate Training materials including videos and podcasts will be available at our internal sustainability site to all of Parkway Properties'' staff that are interested in becoming LEED Accredited professionals.
Please send an e-mail to Daniele Horton at dhorton@pkyadvisors.com if you are interested in participating on our upcoming training or if you are already a LEED Accredited professional so we can update Parkway's count of accredited professionals. Stay tuned for more details!.
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HIGHER GRESB SCORES CORRELATE WITH SUPERIOR FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
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A June 2015 study from the University of Cambridge found that REITs with higher Global Real Estate Benchmarking (GRESB) scores outperform their peers in terms of financial returns, with increases of around 3.4% in ROE and 1.3% in ROA for each 1% increase in a REIT’s GRESB ranking. Aside from finding that sustainability leadership, as indicated by higher GRESB scores, is a great proxy for good management, the study reports that measurement and implementation are more powerful than policy at improving financial performance. The study also highlights significant room for improvement in the sustainability performance of real estate companies, with a median 2014 GRESB score of 58 out of 100.
See related articles below:
· Sustainable Buildings Pay off for Real Estate Investors, finds study from Carbon War Room
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RECENT INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS
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