Boston's Largest Property Owner Vows to Green Its Holdings

Aug. 29, 2009 - Equity Office Properties Trust, owner of 20 office towers throughout the Boston area, has announced a multimillion dollar effort to certify its properties under the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED program, Boston Globe reports.

"We're doing this from a social responsibility perspective, but it's also become necessary to maintain tenants," says Greg Shay, president of Boston operations for Equity Office. "It's gotten to the point where not taking action is somewhat foolish."

The company estimates it will save $1.5 million in electricity costs by 2012 at the six Boston properties where green retrofits are currently under way.

The city of Boston requires that all newly constructed buildings of more than 50,000 square feet be LEED certified, but certification of existing structures is voluntary.

Equity Office says it may eventually expand its green-building push to its properties throughout the U.S.