SUSTAINABILITY & SOCIAL IMPACT AT YOUR BUILDING

OPERATING HEALTHY BUILDINGS

Columbia Property Trust is committed to pursuing a comprehensive approach to health and wellness at our buildings and to providing our tenants and their employees confidence that their buildings offer safe and supportive work environments. 

95 Columbus has earned the following third-party recognition for best-in-class health, wellness, and safety programs at the building. 

Fitwel® Certification

Fitwel is an industry leading building wellness health and wellness certification program developed by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Property features such as location, walkability and transit options, outdoor spaces, access to daylight and views of nature in workspaces, access to water supplies, fitness amenities, and other evidence-based criteria that create healthy, attractive work environments were assessed. To learn more about the Fitwel benchmarking program, visit fitwel.org. 

LEED Gold Certification

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a green building certification program run by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). LEED-certified buildings use less energy and water, put out less waste, save on maintenance costs, offer improved indoor air quality, and focus on health and wellness. To learn more about LEED certification, visit usgbc.org. 

ENERGY STAR FOR TENANTS

Columbia is proud to have been recognized the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ENERGY STAR program as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year for Sustained Excellence. We invite all our tenant companies to join us in advancing the program’s efforts to reduce energy and water usage and create more efficient operations at our buildings.

The best way you can join this effort is by participating in ENERGY STAR® Tenant Space, a new EPA recognition program for sustainability efforts in your leased office space. Energy efficient office spaces can lead to lower utility bills and fewer greenhouse gas emissions in our atmosphere. 

New Legislation will soon require that tenants in many major cities like New York and Washington, D.C., report benchmarking and energy efficiency grading of their own office spaces. The ENERGY STAR® Tenant Space program is a great first step to meeting this requirement. Your Property Management Team is here to partner with you, provide guidance and answer questions. To learn more about the program, criteria, and tips on how to prepare, visit www.energystar.gov/buildings/tenants/about_tenant_space.

TENANT COMPLIANCE FOR RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING

Your assistance toward our goal of conserving energy and water and increasing efficiency is important. In addition to the obvious environmental benefits of energy conservation, your efforts can help to lower building operating costs. 

Please help us reduce our energy and water usage by complying with the following suggestions for resource management, as well as any additional requirements that may be included in your company’s lease language:

• Electricity consumed by lighting fixtures is the second-highest component of our buildings’ total energy consumption (following HVAC-related use). Please turn your office lights off whenever you leave your office for a period of more than thirty minutes, and do not leave lighting turned on when departing your office for the evening.
• Turn off computer and printing equipment when not in use or set to the “sleep” setting.
• Turn off appliances and machinery such as coffee warmers, copiers, and coffee pots when not in use – grouping appliances onto power strips can make it easier to switch off those that aren’t needed.
• Control your window coverings to maintain your office temperature. Close draperies/blinds during periods of direct sunlight and when departing your office for the evening. Your office will remain more comfortable, particularly after a weekend, if you use your draperies/blinds to insulate/screen the window area.
• Use ENERGY STAR-rated appliances and LED lighting whenever possible.
• Report any water drip or leak immediately to the Property Management Office, to help us reduce water losses.

Energy and Water Use Data

Tenants are asked to share their energy and water use data with the landlord for use in reporting whole building performance data to ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, for purposes of compliance with local laws and tracking progress toward Columbia’s energy efficiency goals. 

In turn, Columbia provides select energy and water performance data to tenants upon request, for use in your company’s own environmental tracking and reporting programs. To make such a request on your company’s behalf, please contact the Property Management Office.

OUR GREEN CLEANING POLICY

Columbia’s comprehensive Green Cleaning program includes sustainable cleaning systems and products to maintain a clean and healthy indoor environment for all occupants and foster longevity and efficient performance of our facilities and materials. 

We strive to coordinate cleaning with other basic environmental management strategies in place, including controlling pollution and waste by reducing consumables, limiting indoor-polluting activities, ventilating buildings to reduce indoor contaminants, and designing buildings and ventilations systems to optimize indoor air quality.

Our protocols require the use of cleaning products, hygiene supplies, and hand soaps and sanitizers that meet the applicable standards for Green Seal, UL Ecologo, EPA Safer Choice, or similar programs, and we are committed to minimizing environmental impacts by ensuring procurement of products that have reduced toxicity, conserve natural resources, energy, and materials, and maximize recyclability and recycled content. Our cleaning products and materials are regularly logged and audited, and we also provide regular training for our team members and service providers to help ensure full compliance.

• At 95 Columbus we employ the following measures and products as part of our Green Cleaning program identifying and removing harmful contaminants such as particulates, mold spores, bacteria, and viruses from the environment
• Reducing exposure to cleaning processes and chemicals that themselves may cause adverse health impacts, either to the building occupants, including cleaning staff, or the environment at large 
• Using low environmental impact cleaning products and equipment with dust/particulate control, including HEPA-filter vacuum cleaners and micro-fiber rags 
• Procurement of eco-friendly, locally sourced products and cleaning agents
• Use of refillable, pre-diluted cleaning products and containers
• Microfiber rags and recycled content paper towels and toilet paper

DIVERSITY, EQUITY, & INCLUSION (DEI)

At Columbia, we believe that valuing individual differences, maintaining equality, and creating an environment of inclusion across all facets of our business is essential to our success. We embrace our responsibility to have a positive impact on the communities in which we operate and weave that obligation into the fibers of our business. To better understand our commitment, we invite you to visit the Responsibility section on our website, www.columbia.reit.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

At 95 Columbus, we hold annual drives to benefit local groups such as a sock drive during the year-end holidays. 

In addition, we highlight various events and holidays such as Go Red Day from the American Heart Association and Veterans Day in support of those who have served our country.