First commercial portfolio to achieve the
rating in the U.S.
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) today announced
that Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ESRT), the greater New
York metro area office and retail real estate leader, is the first
commercial real estate portfolio in the U.S. to achieve the WELL
Health-Safety Rating for Facility Operations and Management. ESRT’s
portfolio is comprised of 14 office properties and six stand-alone
retail properties totaling approximately 10.1 million rentable
square feet, including the iconic Empire State Building.
This press release features multimedia. View
the full release here:
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200921005690/en/
The WELL Health-Safety Rating measures five categories: cleaning
and sanitization procedures; emergency preparedness programs;
health service resources; air and water quality management; and
stakeholder engagement and communications.
ESRT’s participation will help restore confidence and trust
among its employees, tenants, staff, and visitors. ESRT’s
leadership comes from the top, its Chairman, CEO, and President,
Anthony E. Malkin is also the Chair of the Real Estate Roundtable’s
Sustainability Policy Advisory Committee and a member of the
Mayor’s Advisory Board for the implementation of Local Law 97 in
New York City. Dana Robbins Schneider, SVP of Energy,
Sustainability and ESG has worked with Mr. Malkin for more than 12
years, and until she joined ESRT was Managing Director of JLL’s
Americas Energy and Sustainability Projects group.
Launched in June, the WELL Health-Safety Rating is an
evidence-based, third-party verified rating for all new and
existing building and space types and is focused on operational
policies, maintenance protocols, emergency plans and stakeholder
engagement strategies to help organizations prepare their spaces
for re-entry in a post COVID-19 environment. Empire State Realty
Trust joined more than 100 organizations, encompassing over 500
facilities, that responded swiftly to enroll in the
documentation-based program and that continue to work towards
implementing its scientific guidance.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has made it necessary for companies
everywhere to elevate the importance of how they contribute to the
health and safety of people. Empire State Realty Trust has gone
above and beyond, demonstrating admirable leadership in
incorporating best practices to more safely reopen our buildings,
augmenting New York City’s resilience in response to the virus,”
said Rick Fedrizzi, IWBI Chairman and CEO. “We are excited to
celebrate this achievement with Empire State Realty Trust as they
continue to create spaces that center on people, now and into the
future.”
For more than a decade, Empire State Realty Trust has evaluated
and implemented measures improve indoor environmental quality in
its portfolio. The $165 million redevelopment completed in December
2019 of the Empire State Building Observatory mitigates direct,
indirect and aerosol transmission through MERV 13 filtration,
increased fresh air ventilation, and bipolar ionization air
purification proven in an accredited laboratory to neutralize
99.92% of coronavirus. Similar measures have been made to upgrade
health, safety and IEQ protocols throughout Empire State Realty
Trust’s entire portfolio.
Adapted from features in the WELL Building Standard (WELL) that
focus on facilities maintenance and operations, the WELL
Health-Safety Rating is designed to guide and empower the actions
of large and small businesses alike in taking the necessary steps
to prioritize the health and safety of their staff, visitors and
stakeholders. It also serves as an annual process that supports
efforts to promote the long-term health and safety of people.
“ESRT has implemented an evidence and science-based approach to
ensure the health and safety of all of our building occupants. We
have focused on Indoor Environmental Quality for more than a decade
and pioneered and showcased many sustainability practices through
our renovations at the Empire State Building – practices we
subsequently rolled out throughout our entire portfolio,” said Dana
Robbins Schneider, SVP of Energy, Sustainability and ESG at ESRT.
“We believe in the power of building performance to improve
employee productivity and wellness. Third party validation from the
International WELL Buildings Institute confirms that ESRT meets and
exceeds the most stringent features of healthy buildings.”
Created by IWBI, the WELL Health-Safety Rating is informed by
guidance developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), global disease
control and prevention centers and emergency management agencies,
recognized standard-making bodies, such as ASTM International and
ASHRAE, and leading academic and research institutions. IWBI has
leveraged insights from its Task Force on COVID-19, established at
the outset of the pandemic to help business and building leaders
integrate actionable insights and proven strategies in the fight
against COVID-19 and other respiratory infections.
To learn more about the WELL Health-Safety Rating, visit
https://www.wellcertified.com/health-safety.
About Empire State Realty Trust
Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: ESRT), a leading real
estate investment trust (REIT), owns, manages, operates, acquires
and repositions office and retail properties in Manhattan and the
greater New York metropolitan area, including the Empire State
Building, the “World's Most Famous Building.” Headquartered in New
York, New York, the Company's office and retail portfolio covers
10.1 million rentable square feet, as of June 30, 2020 consisting
of 9.4 million rentable square feet in 14 office properties,
including nine in Manhattan, three in Fairfield County,
Connecticut, and two in Westchester County, New York; and
approximately 700,000 rentable square feet in the retail
portfolio.
About the International WELL Building Institute
The International WELL Building Institute (IWBI) is leading the
global movement to transform our buildings, communities and
organizations in ways that help people thrive. WELL v2 is the most
recent version of its popular WELL Building Standard (WELL), and
the WELL Community Standard pilot is a district scale rating system
that sets a new global benchmark for healthy communities. WELL is
focused exclusively on the ways that buildings and communities, and
everything in them, can improve our comfort, drive better choices,
and generally enhance, not compromise, our health and wellness.
IWBI mobilizes the wellness community through management of the
WELL AP credential, the pursuit of applicable research, the
development of educational resources, and advocacy for policies
that promote health and wellness everywhere. IWBI is a participant
of the United Nations Global Compact, the world’s largest corporate
citizenship initiative, and helps companies advance the UN
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through the use of WELL. More
information on WELL can be found here.
International WELL Building Institute, IWBI, the WELL Building
Standard, WELL v2, WELL Certified, WELL AP, WELL Portfolio, WELL
Portfolio Score, The WELL Conference, We Are WELL, the WELL
Community Standard, WELL Health-Safety Rating, WELL Health-Safety
Rated, WELL Workforce, WELL and others, and their related logos are
trademarks or certification marks of International WELL Building
Institute pbc in the United States and other countries.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200921005690/en/
Jamie Matos, media@wellcertified.com
Empire State Realty (NYSE:ESRT)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Empire State Realty (NYSE:ESRT)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024