After reviewing the best LEED certified buildings in California through November this year, we continued the list of LEED certified office buildings for 2020 by analyzing San Francisco and its green projects. According to the US Green Building Council, around 52 properties received LEED platinum and gold certification during this period. We have sorted the top 10 office projects that received the highest points on the scorecard. The list includes seven platinum certifications and three gold certifications.
| rank | Project name | Street | city | LEED system version | reached points | Certification level | Certification date |
| 1 | Paragon Point – 2020 | 3 Lagoon Drive | Redwood City | v2009 | 86 | platinum | 10/30/2020 |
| 2 | Working day headquarters | 6110 Stoneridge Mall Road | Pleasanton | v2009 | 85 | platinum | 04/25/2020 |
| 3 | 150 spear | 150 Spear St. | San Francisco | v2009 | 82 | platinum | 11/10/2020 |
| 4th | 650 California Street | 650 California St. | San Francisco | v2009 | 82 | platinum | 06/27/2020 |
| 5 | LMS Architects Office TI | 1940 Bryant St. | San Francisco | v4 | 82 | platinum | 11/18/2020 |
| 6th | Adobe 100-110 Hooper | 100-110 Hooper St. | San Francisco | v4 | 81 | platinum | June 16, 2020 |
| 7th | 345 Brannan | 345 Brannan St. | San Francisco | v4.1 | 80 | platinum | 07/07/2020 |
| 8th | 600 battery | 600 battery St. | San Francisco | v4.1 | 74 | gold | March 24, 2020 |
| 9 | 601 city center | 601 12th St. | Oakland | v4 | 71 | gold | 01/27/2020 |
| 10 | Ferry building | 1 ferry building | San Francisco | v4.1 | 70 | gold | 06/01/2020 |
1. Paragon Point
Paragon Point
Paragon Point is located at 3 Lagoon Drive and received LEED 2009 Platinum certification for the operation and maintenance of existing buildings in October with a scorecard of 86 points. The office complex with two buildings, built in 1985, received its first LEED certification at gold level in 2009. After significant improvements in 2015, the property reached the platinum level with 81 points on the scorecard.
The property is owned by MetLife Real Estate Investment and has a total of 242,498 square feet and 2,600 square feet of retail space. Eco-friendly features include indoor air quality, solid waste disposal, green space cleaning, water performance measurement, indoor fixtures and fittings efficiency, and water-saving landscaping. In addition, Paragon Point’s building automation system uses a “load shedding” strategy to optimize energy efficiency performance. The project also procured a Renewable Energy Certificate (RECs) to offset more than 530 MTCO2e and source nearly 5,380 MWh of renewable energy.
2nd working day head office
Working day headquarters
The 410,000 square meter building, built in 2019, received LEED 2009 New Construction Platinum certification with a scorecard of 85 points in April 2020. The six-story building is owned by Next Play Consulting and has a cool roof – a large 865-kilowatt solar array that provides up to a third of the building’s daily electricity needs and mitigates the urban heat island effect.
Located at 6110 Stoneridge Mall Road, the building consists of an innovative on-site gray water recycling system that aims to save up to 720,000 gallons of water annually. Interior features include indoor trees planted in the building’s open spaces, outdoor areas and an open-air amphitheater for up to 1,500 people. The project marked all points for access to public transport. The property is located next to West Dublin-Pleasanton BART station and parking garage, and includes a bicycle storage room and changing rooms.
TO LISTEN: Podcast: Setting Net Zero
3. 150 spear
150 spear
The 270,000 square meter 150 Spear St. has 2,500 square meters of retail space. Built in 1983, the Midrise property was cosmetically renovated in 2002. Walnut Hill Group acquired the asset in 2017 for $ 182.6 million from Principal Real Estate Investors.
In November of this year, the 18-story building received LEED 2009 platinum certification for the operation and maintenance of existing buildings with an 82-point scorecard. Sustainable features include measurement of water performance and the efficiency of fixtures and fittings for indoor installations, optimized energy efficiency, on-site and off-site renewable energies, solid waste disposal and environmentally friendly cleaning procedures, and indoor air quality management procedures. Castlight Health, Brighterion, Gartner and Commonwealth Foreign Exchange are among the tenants.
4. 650 California Street
The Columbia Property Trust’s 33-story tower first received LEED 2009 Gold certification for the operation and maintenance of existing buildings with a scorecard of 63 points. The company paid $ 309 million for the asset in 2014 when it acquired it from Tishman Speyer. In June of this year, the 478,392 square meter building received platinum certification with an 82-point scorecard.
Known as the Hartford Building, the Owings & Merrill designed property was built in 1963. The upgrades in 2013 and 2017 included on-site valet parking, secure bicycle parking, charging stations for electric vehicles and scooter e-bikes, and Zipcar access. Other renovations included the efficiency of indoor fixtures, measuring water performance, optimizing energy efficiency, on-site and off-site renewable energies, waste management and environmentally friendly cleaning, and indoor air quality management. Notable tenants at 650 California Street include Credit Suisse, WeWork, Affirm, Thornton Tomasetti, and Textainer.
5. LMS Architects Office TI
The 1940 Bryant Street office building received LEED v4 ID + C: Platinum certification for commercial interiors in November with a scorecard of 82 points. The four-story building was developed in 1923 and has 29,000 square meters of office space.
According to USGBC’s scorecard, the development received 18 out of 18 for location and transportation, eight out of 12 for water efficiency, 33 out of 38 for energy and atmosphere, seven out of 13 for materials and resources, six out of 17 for indoor environmental quality, four out of four for regional priority credits and six out of six for innovation. LMSA’s work in ecological design has been recognized by the AIA, USGBC, the US Department of Energy, the National Building Museum and the International Green Building Challenge. Five LMSA projects were named AIA COTE Top 10 Green Projects in the USA
6. Adobe 100-110 Hooper
The four-story, $ 270 million project, which Kilroy Realty Corp. is located at 100 Hooper St. and has a total area of 400,000 square meters. Two identical, neighboring buildings are connected by skybridges on the second, third and fourth floors and an inner courtyard below. Three floors in both buildings are dedicated to Adobe. The company’s roof terrace has raised planters on which a variety of fruits and vegetables are grown that are used in the employee café. On the fourth floor there are electronic boards showing the ingredients and the nutritional value of the menu items.
ALSO READ: Top 5 LEED Platinum Certified Buildings in the US
The complex, built in 2018, received LEED platinum certification with a scorecard of 81 points in June 2020. The facility has a program that addresses energy efficiency, recycling, waste management, water conservation and other sustainable and environmentally friendly cleaning methods, and has set up a three-stream waste service that includes trash, recycling and compost.
7. 345 Brannan
345 Brannan
The five-story office building used to be a parking lot and received LEED platinum certification with an 80-point scorecard. The building has a green roof and roof terrace, while the landscaped area is used to relieve rainwater pressure on the urban sewer system. Much of the rainwater is stored in an on-site cistern that is used as gray water to flush toilets. On the energy efficiency side, the property scored 30 out of 33 points, while it scored six of the eight possible points for waste management. Of the 20 points awarded for the performance of indoor climate quality, the project achieved 17 points.
In December 2019, Kilroy Realty Corp. acquired 345 Brannan and set a record for the highest price per square foot for a large office building in San Francisco. According to CommercialEdge, the company spent $ 146 million, or $ 1,327 per square foot, on the 102,300 square foot lot. The seller was the Dutch investor Breevast BV.
8. 600 battery
600 battery
TMG Partners’ three story office building at 600 Battery St. is 124,547 square feet. The property was gradually put into operation in 1927 and 1938 and completely renovated between 1998 and 2000. In January last year, the company acquired the asset for $ 115 million, or $ 923.35 per square foot.
This year, in March, 400 batteries received a LEED v4.1 O + M: Existing building gold certification with a 74-point scorecard. The improvement program included concrete structures, high ceilings, natural light, polished concrete floors, large, efficient floor slabs and a roof terrace with panoramic views of the city center and the bay. The property benefits from a mix of outdoor spaces like the adjacent Sydney Walton Park, restaurants like Kokkari and Roka Akor, and social amenities like The Battery.
9. 601 city center
601 city center
The 601 City Center property received LEED v4 BD + C: Core and Shell Gold certification with a 71-point scorecard. Located at 601 12th St., Shorenstein has environmentally friendly cleaning practices, integrated pest management, waste and electronic waste recycling, and energy and waste efficiencies.
The 24-story building has 9,500 square meters of retail space on the ground floor, bicycle lockers, a roof terrace, two-story underground car park, more than eight EV parking stations and showers on site. The 606,267 square foot tower is the largest class A green building in the East Bay.
10. Ferry building
Ferry building
The property serves as a terminal for ferries crossing San Francisco Bay and includes a food hall and office building with a total of 274,332 square feet. The refurbished property is located in the 1 Ferry Building and has two floors of class A office space, which are arranged around a central square. In June, the asset achieved LEED v4.1 O + M: Existing building gold certification with a scorecard of 70 points.
Hudson Pacific Properties acquired the property from EQ Office in 2018 for $ 291 million, according to CommercialEdge. Designed in 1892 by architect A. Page Brown in the Beaux Arts style, the ferry building was completed in 1898. When it opened, it was the largest project carried out in the city at the time.
