The Tower Building Continues To Earn High Marks
Jan 27, 2011 9:42 - 2 Comments
Photo from The Tower Companies website
Today The Tower Companies, Washington DC’s largest builder of USGBC LEED® Certified buildings, announced three of their existing buildings have been certified by EPA as Energy Star buildings. I was please to know The Tower Building in Rockville led the list.
I’ve always admired The Tower Building, whether I was driving past on I-270 or biking along Wootton Parkway. The building’s futuristic design always seemed a step above the other new architecture in our City. When it was completed ten years ago, this 265,000 square foot, multi-tenant commercial office building was the first new construction green building in the DC Metro region.
The Tower Companies designs the buildings then continues to work with tenants to improve their overall green rating. In post on the PR Newswire, the certification for the Tower Building was explained:
It received an Energy Star score of 90. According to Tower’s Chief Sustainability Officer, David Borchardt, two factors contributed to the high rating; their 134,000 SF GSA tenant, Health and Human Services already met the new GSA standards for Energy Conservation. Furthermore, Tower replaced all garage lighting, which must be on 24/7, with more efficient lighting, realizing an energy savings of nearly 35%.
How do they encourage energy conservation? Their ideas are good advice for everyone:
- Creating more energy efficient build outs, including lighting and temperature control of spaces.
- Taking advantage of utility rebates and installing more energy efficient motor control devices, allowing heating and cooling systems to run more efficiently.
- Finding opportunities to turn off unused equipment and lights; replacing inefficient lighting when a fixture or bulb needs to be replaced.
Here’s a full description of The Tower Building, and if you are interested in seeing the interior, the Gallery on the Tower website provides a little tour.
The Tower Building, designed by Kishimoto Gordon Dalaya PC, is powered by 100% wind energy and was the first green office building in the Washington metropolitan area when construction started in 1999. In 2003 it was awarded The Apartment and Office Building Association’s prestigious “Green Office Building of the Year” award. In 2009, The Tower Building achieved US Green Building Council LEED Silver certification. Rising 10-stories over a campus of lush woodlands and eco-sensitive planning, The Tower Building is the subject of Case Studies by the Urban Land Institute, US Environmental Protection Agency and US Department of Energy for its advanced sustainable features; years before the US Green Building Council (USGBC) established the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. Amenities include health-food café, a state of the art fitness center, onsite parking, and bicycle storage, lockers, showers, a meditation/yoga room, and an ATM and beautiful art covers the walls; building grounds feature open fields, and tree-filled walking areas and biking trails. Two bus routes pass by, which provide easy access to two metro train stations.
I’ve always liked the Tower Building, but I’m not sure if it deserves any accolades for being environmentally friendly when it’s almost impossible to reach without a car. There’s almost nothing within walking distance and the only public transit is a single Ride-On bus that only comes during rush hour.
A truly environmentally-friendly building is one that you don’t have to burn fossil fuels to access. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t be able to drive to the Tower Building, but users should have alternatives. I don’t know if any “green” materials or energy-saving methods went into Rockville Town Square, but by not requiring users to drive there, it’s a lot “greener” than the Tower Building.
I love the building too, but from the inside there the constant roar of the ocean (270).
The ride-on route that stops in the front circle of the Tower Building is probably only needed during the rush. I believe there are other routes within a block or so (on Wooten Parkway or Tower Oaks)? Also, I can reach it on foot from my neighborhood (New Mark Commons) or through Dogwood Park. Funny enough, it is 2.6 miles from my house by car (crossing 270 twice) and only .5 by foot.