100 Park Avenue wins BOMA International TOBY Award

For the third year in a row, a New York City office tower has taken home the highest award in the office building industry, the BOMA International TOBY (The Office Building of the Year) Award. This year's winner was 100 Park Ave. (at 40th St. in New York City), which competed against seven other buildings to take home the honors in the Renovated Building category. 100 Park's win is the first in an category at the international level for building owner SL Green Realty Corp., and the fourth for New York City overall since 1989 when it began competing internationally. The award was given on June 30, the closing night of the BOMA International Annual Conference and "Every" Building Show. The win is seen by SL Green executive vice president and director of operations and construction Edward Piccinich as a "tremendous success for SL Green and its partners. This designation is a first for SL Green and is a rarity for New York City. It is a testament to the collaborative effort that went into reintroducing 100 Park as the 'New Modern Classic'. We are proud of our achievement and look forward to furthering the already sterling reputation of this trophy property." BOMA/NY president Angelo Grima, who has made excellence, as achieved through the awards process, a hallmark of his administration, said, "The Pinnacle/Award requirements are among the toughest to fulfill in any industry competition, and the renovated category is among the most hotly contested. I am particularly proud that once again, a New York building proved that no one can renovate or manage a building like a New Yorker. But we support these awards for more than home town pride - we have found that the building teams from both nominees and winners are better managers, communicators and professionals after having gone through the awards process - it is truly a blueprint for success." Buildings are judged on the management quality of their building's tenant relations, emergency procedures, energy conservation, environmental and regulatory compliance, staff training and the community impact of the structure and its management practices. 100 Park's award-winning renovation transformed the first building completed in New York after World War II into a 21st Century pioneer: it is the first Manhattan office tower of its type to have green roofs, it is the oldest New York building to achieve Silver LEED-EB and was the first to command rentals in excess of $100 p/s/f for the office market south of 42nd St. The Energy Star-rated tower was renovated from roof to streetline and the multi-year repositioning encompassed, among other capital improvements: a completely new curtainwall façade reflecting the cityscape, sleek steel and glass storefronts and main entrance, a pale sage granite lobby with matching fritted glass and stainless steel accents, and comprehensively upgraded elevator, HVAC, power/utility and security systems. The building also won high marks for its green communications program, community impact and civic involvement, emergency response programs and on-going staff training. The 100 Park BOMA International win began at the local New York level in 2007-08 when it took home the BOMA/NY Pinnacle. In the intervening year of competition, the building team compiled a detailed submission encompassing 10 judging areas and extensive photography, which was then judged by a panel of peers drawn from the real estate industry in the U.S. and Canada. New York TOBY award winners since 2000 were: 2001-2: Corporate Facility: Three & Four Chase Metrotech Center 2001-2: Renovated Building: One Hudson Square 2007-8: Government Building: 90 Church St. 2008-9: Corporate Facility: 550 Madison Ave./Sony U.S. Headquarters Operating Office Building (over 1 million s/f): Time Warner Center.