2000 Tower Oaks Goes Platinum

Congratulations to The Tower Companies and Lerner Enterprises on having their 2000 Tower Oaks Boulevard project certified as one of the first commercial LEED Platinum office buildings in the State of Maryland.

Here are some of the features that make the building so great:

--designed Earn the ENERGY STAR and reduced total building energy consumption by 28%;
--Green-E certified Renewable Energy Certificates were purchased for 100% wind power for the building’s total annual electric energy usage;
--a four-stage air filtration system circulates at least 30% more outside air than required by code, turns over every 51 minutes, controls odors and removes over 90% of airborne contaminants;
--outdoor airflow devices and CO2 monitors increase fresh air when necessary;
--reduced building water consumption by 41%, drought resistant plantings reduce the required water for irrigation by 60%, and condensate water provides 100% of the building’s irrigation needs;
--stormwater runoff is captured and treated (naturally filtered) on-site in the stormwater pond;
--90% of occupants have outside views;
--night-sky light pollution and light trespass from the site is minimized;
--electromagnetic field (EMF) shielding around all major electrical rooms;
--22% of the total building materials contain recycled content and 22% of the building materials were extracted and manufactured within a 500-mile radius; and
--over 85% of the construction waste was recycled.

With these enhancements, the project qualifies for the Maryland Green Building Tax Credit and will earn credits of over $1.6 million. I was glad to join Comptroller Peter Franchot, The Tower Companies partner Jeffrey Abramson and Lerner Enterprises principal and CEO, Theodore N. Lerner at this week’s certification event. And I’m looking forward to more green projects like this one coming to Montgomery County.