KEY POINTS:
While the world's leaders continue to angst about how to tackle climate change, the drive for "greener" commercial buildings is well under way in Auckland.
Lorne Somerville, CB Richard Ellis's associate director, office services, says a multi-pronged call for greener buildings is coming from government, institutional fund managers who invest in listed property stocks and tenants. Demand is also coming from investors in property and developers who are starting to respond to pressure from their clients as well as the direct financial benefits of "going green".
"Groups of investment funds around the world have clubbed together to lobby governments and the companies in which they invest, requiring them to disclose their emissions and address risks associated with climate change," Somerville says.
Anyone dismissing such organisations in New Zealand and Australia as "greenies" should note that funds in the Investor Group for Climate Change include major corporates such as AMP, Babcock & Brown, BT, Eureka and the GPT property group.
"They control $185 billion, about $20 billion of which is in property, and they need to ensure the buildings that they buy and manage will perform well," Somerville says, adding that prospective corporate tenants are not simply motivated by altruistic considerations in their demand for greener buildings. They are driven by their triple bottom line impact reporting; social, financial and environmental. Green buildings have better fresh air rates, lower volatile organic compounds, better daylighting and are actually nicer places to live and work. Tenants are starting to value this.
"A detailed survey of 11,000 people in the US found a 1 to 1.5 per cent increase in productivity within green buildings. For a 4000 sq m tenancy, on salaries alone, that equates to more than US$200,000 [$257,400] a year, or US$50 per square metre."
While the market generally viewed "green" buildings as costly, there were, "surprisingly", financial benefits to the owner.
"ING's New South Wales commercial portfolio has saved over A$790,000 [$902,600] per annum in electrical costs by making changes with nothing less than 15 per cent return on capital. Arguably this has added A$8 million to A$10 million to the fund's capital value," Somerville says.
"Investa reduced water use saving 55,000 litres each day in one building - that is the size of a large domestic swimming pool - every day and in just one building. So clever greening already makes economic sense. Water and energy costs will increase in waves over the next few years."
Waitakere Properties (an "Eco-city" Waitakere City Council trading organisation) instructed architectural design company Ignite to incorporate a number of "green" features into its new 1800 sq m A-grade office space called Central One in the heart of Henderson.
Roof overhangs and louvres provide shading in the occupied building, while a light colour palette reflects sunlight, helping to reduce the reliance on air-conditioning. A large overhang at the building's front and the numerous elliptical louvres reduce the temperature and the glare inside the office space.
Rainwater is also harvested for toilet use and stormwater run-off is controlled with innovative techniques including the planting of a garden on the roof of the Civic Centre. Use of sustainable and recycled materials was also a priority. The building was also designed to optimise working conditions for staff by ensuring the maximum distance to the nearest windows from any work station was only 6-7m.
A proposed Central Two office building for Waitakere Properties is planned, incorporating green features.
Manson TCLM, formerly Manson Developments, is in the process of finishing its first "green-rated" building on the corner of Beach Rd and Tangihua St at Quay Park, scheduled for completion in April, which incorporates the latest green technology and building innovation "to a minimum four-star green rating".
The new seven-floor, $90-million building is the flagship headquarters for GE Money, which has leased all the 13,500 sq m of net lettable space. Green features of the building reflect the "global eco-friendly policies" of the parent GE Corporation (formerly General Electric) which launched its "ecomagination" commitment in May 2005. Somerville says these examples are just the start of a significant shift.
"The energy performance of future buildings will set them so far apart from ordinary buildings as to form a huge performance gulf.
"The next 12 months will see environmental performance established as a significant measure of commercial property in New Zealand. If owners and their buildings are not ready, they will lose out."
