Congratulations to First Potomac Realty Trust for their double wins at the recent 2016 TOBY (The Outstanding Building of the Year) Awards!
Not only was First Potomac named the grand winner, taking the big prize of the night for their Atlantic Corporate Park property, but they also won the prize for Outstanding Building in the 100,000 – 249,999 square foot category for 1750 H Street.
“The TOBY process brings together all property operation team members. Great Forest is an important part of that team, providing focus on not just waste services, but implementing and leading sustainability programs for our portfolio,” says Judith A. Tria, CCIM, CPM, Vice President, Property Management, First Potomac Realty Trust.
Great Forest manages the recycling and waste programs for First Potomac’s portfolio in the Mid-Atlantic, helping the buildings achieve operational efficiency through sustainability. Working with dedicated teams at the buildings, Great Forest prepared and presented detailed metrics and other documents for judging at both winning properties. What did the honored buildings have to make them outstanding?
- A zero waste-focused program to maximize diversion of materials from the landfill.
- Programs that deal with all waste, from e-waste to organics.
- A sophisticated system of data collection that includes hourly “live” tracking of dumpsters using remote sensors for more accurate waste metrics
- Education and training to support the proper implementation of the sustainability programs, including regular monitoring, building walk-throughs and scorecards, and janitorial training.
The data shared with the judges showcased the buildings’ achievements. For example, from January to March 2016, the amount of paper and cardboard saved at 1750 H street alone was equivalent to 248 trees, 44 yards of landfill, 29 barrels of oil, 102,200 gallons of waters, or 59,869 kWh of electricity.
What’s next?
First Potomac has just launched a new composting program working with Veteran Compost, a company that employs veterans and their family members to turn food scraps into high-quality compost.
“This is just one of the many ways First Potomac works to make a difference with their properties. They are not afraid to try new ideas that we bring to them, because they’re focused on maxing out their landfill diversion and implementing high tech initiatives, like the Enevo sensors. I am delighted that their well-deserved efforts have been recognized,” says David Troust, Great Forest’s V.P. of Business Development.
Presented by the Apartment and Office Building Association (AOBA), the TOBY Awards honor excellence in commercial building management and operations in the Washington, D.C., region. It is one of the real estate industry’s best known honors.
Congratulations to all the 2016 TOBY winners!
