Fort Worth-based Crescent Real Estate LLC and J.P. Morgan Asset Management announced today that McKinney & Olive earned additional recognition as an environmentally friendly and customer-focused building when it secured LEED v4 for Building Operations & Maintenance: Existing Buildings Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. USGBC LEED v4 certification is the most rigorous of the green building program designations.
McKinney & Olive achieved LEED certification for implementing practical and measurable strategies and solutions aimed at achieving high performance in sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection and indoor environmental quality. The LEED v4 O+M: EB certification cited McKinney & Olive for indoor environmental quality, water efficiency and energy and atmosphere improvement.
More than 75 percent of the building’s offices have views of outdoors. Inside water use was reduced by 35 percent and outdoor water use reduced by 68 percent compared to the LEED baseline. McKinney and Olive also ranks in the top 10 percent in energy efficiency among similar properties.
McKinney & Olive’s sleek design, featuring a sheer glass façade, roof-top terrace and one-acre outdoor piazza provides a creative space for office customers and connects McKinney & Olive with the community. The open-space piazza with tables, park benches and water features attracts the community to McKinney & Olive as an outdoor space to enjoy in pedestrian-friendly Uptown Dallas, adding to the area’s reputation as a walkable, livable community.
According to Angelique Wade, Crescent’s general manager for McKinney & Olive, and a member of the first project team to obtain a LEED certification for Existing Building Operations and Maintenance in Dallas-Fort Worth, it is fitting that concurrent with McKinney & Olive earning LEED Gold, USGBC also recognized The Crescent with a LEED silver-certification for an existing building, LEED-EB: O&M v2009. This designation recognizes existing buildings that continue to evolve with green building standards. The Crescent is widely credited with starting the renaissance of Uptown Dallas when the three-tower, mix-use retail facility opened in 1986.
Crescent is the property management company for both McKinney & Olive and The Crescent.
In 2016, The Crescent completed a $33 million dollar upgrade that opened the office towers and mix-use retail space to the community. Outdoor courtyards with open gardens and terraces serve as gathering spaces. Tree-lined walkways, retail storefronts and restaurants with street entrances facilitate community access. Upgrades also included additional energy efficiencies and water savings for the office towers.
“McKinney & Olive and The Crescent LEED certifications demonstrate tremendous green building leadership,” said Mahesh Ramanujam, president and CEO, USGBC. “LEED was created to make the world a better place and revolutionize the built environment by providing everyone with healthy, green and high performing buildings. McKinney & Olive and The Crescent serve as prime examples of how the work of innovative building projects can use local solutions to make a global impact on the environment.”
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), an internationally-recognized green building certification rating system developed by USGBC, is the foremost program for buildings, homes and communities that are designed, constructed, maintained and operated for improved environmental and human health performance.
“Crescent is committed to continue making improvements to the properties we manage,” said Wade. “These improvements result in environmentally-sound operating practices which benefit our communities, our customers, and our customers’ bottom lines.”
Crescent also developed McKinney & Olive, which was designed by world-renowned architect Cesar Pelli. McKinney & Olive offers world-class architecture, premier office space, along with exclusive restaurant and retail options in the vibrant, pedestrian-oriented Uptown Dallas neighborhood.
