the boma magazine - november/december 2009

November/december 2009

Experience the Power of the BOMA Network

Plus:

It’s Time to Lead

Elevating your Elevator’s ROI

A New Age for the Office Standard

Leading the Way at GSA—Bob Peck Comes Home

Strategies for a Distressed Market

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November/December 2009 BOMA 5

November/December 2009 Volume 5, No. 6

For advertising rates and information, contact Paul Hagen at Stamats Business Media 866-965-4205.

Call for Nominations: Vice Chair and Executive Committee MembersBOMA International’s Nominating Committee is seeking candidates for the position of vice chair and for five members of the Executive Committee to the Board of Governors. For further information, please contact BOMA International, c/o Ann Coslett, BOMA International, 1101 15th St., NW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20005, telephone (202) 326-6325; fax (202) 408-2699; e-mail [email protected].

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DEPARTMENTS

Volume 5, No. 6 The BOMA Magazine November/December 2009, (ISSN 1532-4346), Copyright 2009. The BOMA Magazine is published bimonthly in January/February; March/April; May/June; July/August; Septem-ber/October; and November/December by the Building Owners and Managers Asso-ciation (BOMA) International, 1101 15th St., NW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20005; Telephone 202-326-6300; Fax 202-326-6377; www.boma.org. Periodicals Postage paid at Washington, D.C. and additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The BOMA Magazine, Attn: List Department, 1101 15th St., NW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20005. Undeliverable U.S. copies should be sent to: The BOMA Magazine, Attn: List Department, 1101 15th St., NW, Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20005. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: PO Box 875, STN A, Windsor, ON N9A 6P2.

Time to LeadLaura HorsleyAre your leadership strategies in place to deal with a distressed market . . . and a distressed staff? Elevating Your Elevator ROI

Sasha BaileyTips for preserving one of your building’s most critical assets.

Setting New StandardsLindsay TiffanyNew floor measurement methodology option looks to simplify lease calculations.

[ i ]

o f f i c e b u i l d i n g s :

standard methods of measurement and calculating rentable area

building owners and managers association (boma) international

www.boma.org

6 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRFull speed ahead.

8 LEGISLATIVE UPDATESenate Real Estate Caucus launches, new legislation would increase energy-efficiency tax deductions, RAND study on energy performance released.

10 STATE & LOCAL UPDATEBOMA/Houston celebrates 75 years of advocacy, cities face bumpy financial future.

12 CODES & STANDARDS UPDATEICC hearings kick off in Baltimore, ASHRAE Energy Standard (90.1-2010) nears completion, ASHRAE unveils new building energy label.

14 LEADING THE WAYNewly appointed GSA Public Buildings Commissioner Bob Peck talks about the Recovery Act, establishing a “test-bed” of innovation in public buildings and his vision for his second time around as commissioner.

18 AROUND THE INDUSTRYBOMEX draws a crowd in Montreal, Behringer Harvard “connects the dots” with BOMA 360. Plus, the latest class of BOMA 360 designees announced.

32 SECTOR WATCHAnthony CostaFood for thought: GSA merges wellness and sustainability through food service.

34 TRENDS TRACKERRobert SchillerCreating a sustainable urban oasis…in the desert.

36 GREEN SCENEAOBA’s Green Conference focuses on smart solutions.

38 RESEARCH CORNERAre declining income retail numbers a sign of things to come for office?

40 EYE ON EDUCATIONThe other option for distressed assets: What property professionals should know about receivership.

42 BUYERS’ GUIDECheck out the latest industry products and services.

44 CONFERENCE CONNECTIONFeel the power of the BOMA network. What past attendees are saying.

6 BOMA November/December 2009

Message froM the Chair

Publisher: Lisa M. Prats, CAE

editor: Laura Horsley

associate editor: Lindsay Tiffany

Contributing editors: Karen W. Penafiel, CAE, Ronald Burton, James Cox, Noel Popwell, Kristin Bowling

Designer: Amy Belice

Published by: Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International

BOMA International OfficersChair and Chief elected officer James A. Peck, RPA, FMACB Richard Ellis Albuquerque, N.M.

Chair-electRay H. Mackey, Jr., RPA, CPM, CCIMStream Realty Partners, LP Dallas, Texas

Vice Chair Boyd R. Zoccola Hokanson Companies, Inc. Indianapolis, Ind.

secretary/treasurer Kent Gibson, CPMZions Securities Corporation Salt Lake City, Utah

President and Chief operating officer Henry H. Chamberlain, CAE, APRBOMA International Washington, D.C.

The cost for The BOMA Magazine is $75 a year for subscribers and $50 a year for BOMA International members.

Publication of advertising should not be deemed as endorsement by BOMA International. The publisher reserves the right in its sole and absolute discretion to reject any advertisement at any time submitted by any party. Material contained herein does not neces-sarily reflect the opinion of BOMA International, its members or its staff.

James A. Peck, RPA, FMA

Chair and Chief Elected Officer

BOMA members know that it doesn’t

work that way. In fact, the leadership

experts we interviewed for the cover

story told us again and again that,

despite the challenges an organization

faces during a distressed market, these

are often the times of greatest opportuni-

ties. Knowing that property professionals

need real solutions today, not a year from

today, BOMA has taken the opportunity

in the past several months to roll out the

kind of new programming to give BOMA

members true competitive advantage.

Case in point, since its launch late last

spring: The BOMA 360 Performance Pro-

gram has elevated the profile of scores

of office buildings, giving owners and

managers a highly visible way of show-

ing that their building is a market leader.

Check out the case study on page 18 to

see how the BOMA 360 designation is

resonating with current and prospec-

tive tenants at Behringer Harvard. Like-

wise, innovation also fueled the release

of the new online EER. Benchmarking

and measuring performance is a critical

tool for not just surviving a down mar-

ket, but setting a course for competitive

recovery. The new tools available through

the online EER allow practitioners to save

time by instantly accessing millions of

data points and customizing reports, and

save money by purchasing only the mar-

kets they need.

Full Speed AheadIn this issue’s cover story (Time to Lead, page 24), there’s

a reference to leaders who make the mistake of putting the management of their company’s “human assets” on auto-pilot during a difficult market cycle, wrongly assuming that their best and brightest will stick around because of a perception that there’s nowhere else to go. In a broader sense, it’s not unusual for organizations and associations to fall into a similar pattern, assuming that a recession—and the reduction in resources it can bring—somehow means that expectations will not be as high and innovation and new programming can go on hiatus.

The force behind the innovation is, and

always has been, the power of the BOMA

network. These ideas do not come from

33 people sitting in an office in Washing-

ton, D.C.; they come from you. It was at

last year’s Winter Business Meeting (WBM)

that BOMA’s members met to craft the

final version of the BOMA 360 Perfor-

mance Program. And last year’s National

Issues Conference (NIC) was where BOMA

members took to the halls of Congress to

testify to the critical role commercial real

estate plays in a thriving economy, making

important inroads on issues like card check

and TALF expansion.

In 2010, we are combining these two

important events, February 1-4, in Wash-

ington, D.C., so that we have the critical

mass to both educate lawmakers and

build a strong business plan for the year

ahead. Energy and tax issues are playing

out now on Capitol Hill and look to have

a profound impact on our industry and

recovery if we don’t act collectively. This

is also our opportunity to share ideas and

problem-solve as we define the issues and

find the solutions together.

I look forward to seeing you in Washing-

ton, D.C., in February!


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legislative UPDate

TALF Loan Program for CMBS Gets Much-Needed Extension

In August, the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury announced that they would extend the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) for com-mercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS). The original sunset date of Dec. 31, 2009, was extended to June 30, 2010, for newly issued CMBS, and to March 31, 2010, for other asset-backed securities and CMBS sold before Jan. 1, 2009 (the so-called “legacy CMBS”).

The extension followed a request in a “Dear Colleague” letter from Represen-tatives Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.), Gary G. Miller (R-Calif.) and 39 other members of

THE 111TH CONGRESS REAL ESTATE launched on October 21 with a special briefing focusing on the state of the real estate industry, hosted by the National Real Estate Organizations (NREO). Attendees heard from industry experts and leading economists on how the current economic climate has affected commercial and residential real estate, and learned about the key drivers that will influence economic recovery in the industry.

Honorary Co-Hosts and Senate Real Estate Caucus Co-Chairs Sens. Ben Car-din (D-Md.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.) gave the opening remarks. Sen. Cardin was a key supporter of the first-time home buyers’ tax credit. Sen. Isakson was a long-time real estate professional before going into public service. BOMA President Henry Chamberlain moder-ated a dynamic panel discussion on the state of the real estate industry.

William Maher, director of North American Investment Strategy for LaSalle Investment Strategy, gave the commercial real estate outlook. Accord-ing to Maher, commercial real estate

prices have dropped 40.6 percent from their peak in October 2007, and are expected to drop to about 45 percent from that peak before they level off. He added that, while new supply of com-mercial real estate is not a concern as construction has virtually stopped, weak demand for commercial space is push-ing up vacancy rates. Maher noted that one bright spot is the U.S. REIT market, as prices have rebounded and REITs are raising new capital. He emphasized that the availability of credit is the key to preventing commercial foreclosures and delinquencies.

“The most important takeaway from today’s briefing is the power in dialogue as we discuss marketplace insights that will help shape policies,” said Cham-berlain. “Collectively, we will find solu-tions to aid the economic recovery by improving bank lending, creating jobs and building back value in commercial and residential real estate.”

Healthcare, Climate Change Top Fall Congressional Agenda

Congress is hard at work with some heavy lifting to complete before the end of the year. And many voices in Congress predict it will be a long year, with adjournment not expected before mid-December. According to their self-imposed agenda, healthcare reform and climate change are the big challenges they’d like to complete before year’s end, knowing that, if these issues are not addressed in 2009, they will be even more difficult to pass in 2010 as Con-gress gears up for the November 2010 mid-term elections. And then there are

Senator Ben Cardin (left) with BOMA President Henry Chamberlain.

Senate Real Estate Caucus Launchesthe FY2010 spending bills that are a long way from completion …

On September 30, Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and John Kerry (D-Mass.) introduced S. 1733, the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act. The new Senate bill includes an antici-pated cap-and-trade program, as well as energy provisions (such as a section on strengthening building codes and an incentive program for retrofitting build-ings). Despite the best efforts of many in Congress, it appears highly unlikely that they will have a bill passed prior to the December climate talks in Copenhagen.

BOMA will continue its work to ensure that Congress understands the needs and concerns of the commercial real estate industry, and why voluntary incentive programs—not mandates—are more effective in spurring innovative energy-efficiency programs in commer-cial buildings.


Congress requesting its extension. Given the amount of lead time needed to put together a CMBS deal, it was necessary to extend the program further in order for it to be more effective in provid-ing liquidity to the market. The TALF’s intent is to help prevent defaults on economically viable commercial prop-erties, increase the capacity of current holders of maturing mortgages to make additional loans and facilitate the sale of distressed properties.

IRS Issues New REMIC Guidance

On Sept. 15, 2009, the IRS issued guid-ance applicable to Real Estate Mort-gage Investment Conduits (REMICs) that removes the tax impediments that have been preventing borrowers, lend-ers and other stakeholders from having meaningful negotiations in connection with securitized commercial mortgage loans. The new guidance makes clear that discussions involving modifica-tions to the terms of a securitized loan may occur at any time without a REMIC losing its special tax status. It enables a loan servicer to modify a loan if it meets specific criteria and the servicer believes the modification will reduce the chances for default.

The guidance became effective on September 16 and applies to loan mod-ifications after Jan. 1, 2008. The new guidance has no termination date. This new IRS guidance will provide more options for modifying securitized com-mercial mortgage loans, which will help to reduce foreclosures and lost jobs, as well as prevent depressing commercial real estate values even further.

This new IRS guidance will provide more options for modi-fying securitized commercial mortgage loans, which will help to reduce foreclosures and lost jobs, as well as prevent depressing commercial real estate values even further.

RAND Study on Energy Performance Released

In September, the RAND Corpora-tion, a nonprofit research organiza-tion, released its long-awaited techni-cal report on energy performance in

buildings. The report was funded by the Real Estate Roundtable and BOMA Inter-national, through the support of BOMA’s Industry Defense Fund.

The study, “Improving the Energy Per-formance of Buildings: Learning from the European Union and Australia,” examines policies that promote energy efficiency in buildings implemented by the European Union (EU) and the Aus-tralian Commonwealth and some of its states and territories, and why they are working or not working. Finally, the study examines the implications these policies or similar policies would have if implemented in the United States.

Specifically, public policies in the EU and Australia that promote build-ing energy efficiency include building codes, energy-efficiency certificates (labels), requirements for public build-ings, training and certification of experts and white-certificate programs. In gen-eral, the report concludes that most of the policies that have been put in place to-date are still being “tweaked” and amended to achieve the desired out-comes, and many are still too new to fully assess their impact. RAND also con-cludes that, though the experiences of the EU and Australia suggest that these types of policies can prove useful to pro-mote energy efficiency in buildings, their rollout and consistent implementation pose challenges.

To view a copy of the full report or summary, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/technical_reports/TR728/.

Legislation to Increase Energy-Efficiency Tax Deduction

On August 7, Sens. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) intro-duced S. 1637, legislation to increase the energy-efficient commercial buildings tax deduction from $1.80 to $3.00 per square foot.

This tax incentive was first passed as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to improve the energy efficiency of com-mercial buildings. The “Commercial Building Tax Deduction” establishes a tax deduction for expenses incurred for energy-efficient building expendi-tures made by a building owner. The deduction is currently limited to $1.80 per square foot of the property or reno-vated space, with allowances for par-tial deductions for improvements in

interior lighting, HVAC and hot water systems and building envelope systems. The upgrades must achieve a 50-per-cent reduction in annual energy cost to the user, compared to a base building defined by the ASHRAE/IESNA 90.1-2001 Standard. This deduction has been extended through Dec. 31, 2013.

Get Ready for Capitol Hill!With all the critical real estate issues

before Congress—energy efficiency, cli-mate change, leasehold depreciation, capital gains, carried interest, card check and the list goes on—it is imper-ative that we take every opportunity to communicate with our elected officials to educate them on our issues and the impact pending legislation could have on an industry whose health is vitally important to the recovery of our nation’s economy.

In February 2010, BOMA members from across the country will take part in an important industry event—the National Issues Conference (NIC). Please make your plans now to join us! This next year, the NIC has been combined with the BOMA International Winter Business Meeting and Leadership Confer-ence to cut down on the number of meet-ings, expense and time out of the office. Please join us February 1-4 in Washing-ton, D.C. You’ll have an opportunity to get involved in committee meetings, network with your peers from around the country, attend “how to lobby” brief-ings, hear from Congressional leaders and policy experts and make our voices heard on Capitol Hill.

To kick off the program, Charlie Cook, one of the premier experts on Congress, will share his insights on the Obama Administration, Congress’ ability to accomplish its policy objectives and how the 2010 mid-term elections are shaping up. We will also hear from some elected officials directly on the importance of delivering our messages to Capitol Hill. As always, BOMA’s advocacy staff will be on hand to discuss the legislative issues, as well as the do’s and don’ts for our Hill meetings—then we’re off to meet with our elected officials!

For more information or to register, please visit the BOMA Web site at www.boma.org.


state & local update

THIS YEAR MARKS BOMA/HOUSTON’S 75TH ANNIVERSARY; and, throughout its existence, the association has champi-oned commercial real estate’s interests at both the state and local levels.

Their advocacy efforts have included countering an effort by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) to unionize the city’s janitors; working with the city’s fire department to install automatic fire sprinkler systems in all high-rise buildings; and collaborating with the mayor and the Building Services Department to assist them in placing the city’s facilities under the management of a third party. The association also miti-gated the cost to the commercial real estate industry by lessening the impact of a false fire alarm ordinance, as well as onerous regulations on power washing. Other issues tackled by BOMA/Houston members include parking lot standards, historic preservation ordinances, ele-vator issues and signage requirements.

BOMA/Houston Celebrates 75 Years of Advocacy

They have also been involved in several building code reviews.

Through its political action com-mittee, BOMA/Houston encourages its members to take an active role in gov-ernment and allows the association to support local candidates favorable to the commercial real estate industry.Notes Robert Carlen, BOMA/Houston president, “We have become a force in impacting legislation through the dedicated efforts of our members and through our involvement with Texas BOMA.”

Cities Face Budget DeficitsAccording to a report from the

National League of Cities, cities faced a 2.9-percent budget deficit in 2009 due to a decline in income and sales tax revenues. Eighty-eight (88) percent of municipal financial officers reported that their cities were less able to meet their fiscal needs than in 2008. The

report also shows that many cities will have difficulties in meeting their finan-cial needs in 2010 and in coming years.

Income and sales taxes are the ear-liest source of city revenue to decline due to job losses and decreases in con-sumer purchasing. Property taxes, which make up the bulk of city revenue nation-wide, began to slow in 2009 (1.6-percent growth) as real property assessments were adjusted to reflect declining values. Collections of property taxes lag behind the current real estate market. Conse-quently, tax bills reflect property values from anywhere between 18 months to several years prior, so the full impact of the economic downturn will not be real-ized until the coming years.

The report shows that 25 percent of cities raised property taxes, while 19 percent increased the level or impact of development fees. Ninety-one (91) percent reported that their cities made spending cuts in 2009, and 82 percent predict that their cities will make fur-ther cuts in 2010. The most common cuts were hiring freezes and layoffs, and delaying or canceling capital infrastruc-ture projects.


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Codes & standards update

THE INTERNATIONAL CODE COUN-CIL’S 2009-2010 CODE DEVELOPMENT CYCLE kicked off with a series of Public Hearings to consider more than 3,000 proposals for incorporation in the 2012 editions of the 12 ICC codes—the larg-est number of code change proposals ever considered in one cycle by ICC. The hearings included two tracks of continu-ous sessions from October 24 through November 11 in Baltimore, Md.

BOMA will be representing the inter-ests of our members on a host of issues during this cycle of ICC code develop-ment. The cycle will conclude with mul-tiple Final Action Hearings in May and October, 2010.

Of critical importance are proposed modifications dealing with occupant egress, fire control, structural and energy efficiency. Here are a few of the issues BOMA will be facing in this ICC cycle :

ICC Public Hearings— Pivotal Issues for BOMA Members

• Increasedspray-onfireproofingofsteel structural members with annual inspections.

• Extensivevideosurveillancesystemsfor elevator lobbies.

• Mandatoryvulnerabilityassessmentsfor specific buildings.

• Additionalprotectionforelevatorwir-ing and cabling.

• Moreextensivemandatoryfireevacu-ation plans.

• 10,000-square-footfirecontrolcom-partmentalization of floor plates in some buildings.

• Blast-resistantwallconstruction.

• Additional 25-percent more strin-gentenergy-efficiencyrequirementsimpacting walls, glass/windows, doors, lighting, piping, ducts, HVAC and other systems.

• Automaticshut-offescalatorcontrols.

• Mandatoryon-siterenewableenergysystems.

• Overhangsonbuildingwindows/glasswalls depending on orientation.

BOMAwillprovideextensiveupdateson the outcome of these hearings and the prospects for final action on code change proposals that could negatively impact BOMA members via www.boma.org and BOMA’s LinkedIn and Facebook sites.

ASHRAE Energy Standard (90.1-2010) Nears Completion

Developmentofthenexteditionofthemost widely used commercial building energy design standard from the Ameri-can Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers—ASHRAE 90.1-2010—is slated for completion early in 2010. BOMA has represented its mem-bers as an organizational voting member of the 90.1 Standards Project Committee for many years and the impacts from this standard on BOMA members continue to grow.

ASHRAE set a goal for the commit-tee to reach a 30-percent energy savings

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over what would be achieved in build-ings designed to the 2004 edition of 90.1 and the committee set about try-ing to achieve this target in late 2007. Changes made to the standard have so farachievedapproximately24-percentenergy savings with the inclusion of very aggressive added insulation levels, win-dow/door/glass efficiencies, piping and duct insulation, HVAC efficiencies and other measures that will add consider-able cost to constructing new buildings, tenant finish-out projects and renova-tionstoexistingbuildings.

Although BOMA is fully engaged in the effort to achieve these aggres-sive energy-savings targets, it is clear that measures necessary to meet these goals will result in significant added cost. Achievingthe50-percentsavingsover90.1-2004 that ASHRAE has set for the 2016 edition will be much more difficult than initially envisioned.

New Building Energy Label from ASHRAE

ASHRAE has unveiled a new build-ing energy labeling program designed to provide a snapshot of energy use, much

like MPG ratings for automobiles. The program—Building Energy Quotient, or Building EQ—includes ratings for all buildingsexceptresidential.Eachbuild-ing would be given two ratings based on energyusepersquarefoot,peryear:onebased on building design and another based on energy-use data from opera-tions. Buildings would be rated from A+ to F, with A+ denoting net zero (produc-ing as much energy as consumed) and F for “unsatisfactory” buildings.

An Alternative to ENERGY STAR?Building EQ has been touted by

ASHRAE as an “enhancement” to the

EPA ENERGY STAR building energy labeling and benchmarking program, rather than an alternative program. ASHRAEsaysBuildingEQ“willexpandon the type and amount of information provided by the ENERGY STAR program” and will cover some buildings not cur-rently covered by ENERGY STAR. BOMA has worked closely with EPA to make the ENERGY STAR label a valuable commod-ity in the marketplace and we are inter-estedinexploringhowtheBuildingEQprogram could enhance that effort. Like ENERGY STAR, the ASHRAE program is voluntary.BOMAhasexpressedcon-cerns that, with proposals introduced in Congress to mandate building energy labels, Building EQ or ENERGY STAR could be used to fulfill that intent.

BOMA is working with ASHRAE to assess how this program would enhance our efforts in the areas of energy effi-ciency and sustainable buildings. We are especially interested in how Build-ing EQ might work with the BOMA 360 Performance Program to give building ratings even more value to prospective tenants, brokers, buyers and others.

1GJ09-COMMRETAILERS-NC_BOMAHLF.i1 1 6/10/09 4:59:03 PM


leading the way

BOB PECK WAS APPOINTED the Com-missioner of Public Buildings by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) this past August. The role is a familiar one for Peck who also served as commis-sioner during the Clinton Administra-tion. He brings a diverse perspective on returning to GSA. His extensive resumé includes experience working for several public and private entities, including Jones Lang LaSalle, the American Insti-tute of Architects, the Greater Washing-ton Board of Trade, the U.S. Army and as a private-sector attorney. The BOMA Magazine Editor Laura Horsley had the opportunity recently to visit with the commissioner to discuss the priorities for the Public Buildings Service (PBS).

what is your no. 1 priority as you lead gSa’s Public Buildings Service?

I also did this job for about five years under the Clinton Administration. I’ve been saying that this administration is so green, they are recycling people. First off, the biggest priority is our Recovery Act projects. We have about $5.5 billion in Recovery Act funding and we are sup-posed to spend it fast. I’m happy to say we are on track to do that. Secondly, we are supposed to spend it on green pro-grams. We hope to have a significant impact on our real estate inventory by making it more sustainable and less energy consumptive.

The purpose of the Recovery Act funding is to create jobs, so we are try-ing to get the money into the economy as fast as we can. And we are doing pretty well—we have committed about $1.4 billion to-date and are on track for our goal of $2 billion by December 31. We will hit $5 billion another year from now. Recovery Act projects include new

Public Building Prioritiesfrom Bob Peck

Commissioner, Public Buildings ServiceU.S. general Services administration

construction of courthouses and land ports of entry, and converting existing federal buildings into high-performance green buildings.

what else do you want to revisit or enhance?

When I was here before, we started benchmarking against the Experience Exchange Report (EER) to see how we did. And I’m happy to say that the first time we benchmarked we found that we paid much less in utilities per square foot than the private sector. It taught us a lot of great lessons, and we are still doing that. I want to focus even more on our metrics and getting performance measures really embedded in the think-ing of our people. We collect rent from federal agencies and we use that money to operate, so we need to be very careful about how much we spend.

you are on BOMa’s national advisory Council and you recently participated in aOBa’s green conference. why is BOMa involvement important?

It’s not only important for me, but for everyone at GSA. We have people out there every day who are negotiating leases with BOMA members. They need to know the market. They don’t just need to know where there is vacant space, but they need to know what deals are being done in the marketplace, what are the concessions being offered, what are the asking rates and what are the effective rates people are getting.

It’s my obligation to listen to people in the industry who might say, “Here’s

a place where you guys might do a bet-ter job,” or “Here’s a place where we’re experiencing problems.” The NAC mem-bers didn’t get where they are by being bashful, so I never have problems get-ting either the good or bad commentary.

how do you hope your broad experience will help you at the PBS?

For me, this is the perfect job. I really, really like real estate and I like gov-ernment and public service. I think one advantage I have is that I worked on Capitol Hill—working for the Sen-ate Committee that approves the GSA building program, and on the Executive Branch side at the Office of Management and Budget. I have also worked in real estate on the private side, so I have a lot of different ways to test the ideas that come in here to see if they will work in this environment—which is partly the private-sector building industry and partly the Washington, D.C., political industry.

is there anything else that you would like to add?

The way we operate our buildings is incredibly important. You can waste all that great energy savings if you don’t operate well, and I’m not just talking about letting the air filters get clogged. I’m talking about recycling, training people to use only the artificial light they need, etc. I think operations is the untapped well of energy and environ-mental savings that we are all going to be taking a much closer look at.

lOOK FOR it: Check out the full interview with Bob Peck and a video interview at www.boma.org/news/BOMAorgMagazine


Around the industry

Above the Mark—Behringer harvard Case studyIN TODAY’S DISTRESSED MARKET, ten-ants have more choice than ever about where to sign a lease. Several commer-cial real estate companies have found a new tool to attract tenants and prove that their buildings are best-in-class in every aspect of management and opera-tions: the BOMA 360 Performance Pro-gram. Bank of America Plaza in Charlotte, N.C., owned and managed by Behringer Harvard, was among the first class of buildings conferred with the BOMA 360 designation. Behringer Harvard has used the program to differentiate their build-ing from the competition, showing ten-ants and investors that they are a notch above the rest.

Behringer Harvard knew BOMA 360 would be an asset to their buildings as soon as they heard about it. The compa-ny’s Vice President of Property Manage-ment-Southeast Region John Murray was especially drawn to the program for its comprehensive nature. “Having obtained LEED Gold and ENERGY STAR® as our benchmark, we looked to the BOMA 360 program to connect the dots, which trans-lates into added value for us, for tenants and for our investors,” says Murray. Beh-ringer Harvard´s Real Estate Manager Mary Cook concurs: “The program is so comprehensive. Not only are you looking at a building from 10,000 feet, but you’re also evaluating the day-to-day operations and best practices.”

The value of the program was also clear to M. Jason Mattox, chief administrative officer at Behringer Harvard. “From a cor-porate perspective, we’re proud of our

operational best practices, tenant rela-tions, sustainability—all of those things,” says Mattox. “The BOMA 360 designation is a badge of honor that exemplifies best practices and creates a wonderful goal for other properties in our portfolio. It proves we are way above the mark.”

Murray says that the most impor-tant benefit of earning the designation is the way it resonates with current and prospective tenants. “It is imperative to

operate as efficiently and effectively as possible. Prospective tenants who are looking to lease are asking good ques-tions and are increasingly savvy. The 360 designation allows us to be in a position to answer their questions. It is really posi-tive information to give out.”

Bank of America Plaza is a BOMA 360 Building.

Continued on page 20

View the latest class of BoMA designees on page 20.

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Johnson Controls and CBRE Score High in Newsweek’s Green Rankings

Newsweek magazine recently ranked the environ-mental performance of the 500 largest U.S.-based publicly traded companies. BOMA members Johnson Controls and CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) both scored high on the list, coming in at 11th and 45th, respec-tively. The rankings are based on each company’s actual resource use and emission levels, its envi-ronmental policies and strategies and its reputation among its peers. To see the full list of rankings, visit greenrankings.newsweek.com.

Congratulations to the Latest Class of BOMA 360 Designees!

17901 Von KarmanIrvine, Calif.

Owned by: Von Karman Associates, LLC

Managed by: LBA Realty

Charlotte Mecklenburg Government CenterCharlotte, N.C.

Owned by: City of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County

Managed by: Engineering & Property Management, Building Services Division

Granite Park ThreePlano, Texas

Owned by: Granite Park III, Ltd.

Managed by: Granite Properties

Granite PlazaIrving, Texas

Owned by: GPI Plaza, LP

Managed by: Granite Properties, Inc.

Granite Westchase IHouston, Texas

Owned by: Granite 190 Center, LTD dba Granite Westchase Partners, LTD


The Hurt BuildingAtlanta, Ga.

Owned by: Hurt Financial Associates, LLC

Managed by: Harbor Group Management Co.

Palisades IRichardson, Texas

Owned by: Equastone Palisades I, LLC

Managed by: Transwestern

Spectrum CenterAddison, Texas

Owned by: GPI Spectrum, LLC


Time Warner CenterNew York, N.Y.

Owned by: A/R Garage LLC; A/R Retail LLC; Jazz at Lincoln Center, Inc.; Time Warner Inc.; A/R Office, LLC; AREA Columbus LLC; Istithmar Columbus Centre LLC; One Central Park-North Tower at AOL Time Warner Center Condominium; One Central Park-South Tower at AOL Time Warner Center Condominium

Managed by: Related Management

Tollway Towers NorthDallas, Texas

Owned by: Granite Properties


Tollway Towers SouthDallas, Texas

Owned by: Granite Properties


The Towers—901 Main AvenueNorwalk, Conn.

Owned by: 35 Glover Partners, LLC

Managed by: BLT Management, LLC

Is your building a BOMA 360 building? For more information on the BOMA 360 Per-formance Program, visit www.boma.org/GetInvolved/BOMA360


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BOMEX Focuses on Canadian Market Recovery

BOMA International leadership, including Chair and Chief Elected Officer Jim Peck and President and Chief Operating Officer Henry Chamberlain, recently attended BOMEX in Montreal, BOMA Can-ada’s annual expo and conference. BOMEX had a strong turnout and a high-caliber program featuring an industry panel and renowned economist Jeff Rubin. The education tracks were focused on tenant and client relations, green/sustainability, emergency preparedness and ways to be more efficient. Many sessions were standing-room only.

The economy was a key issue at BOMEX, though there was a general consensus that the Canadian commercial real estate market has stabilized and is poised for a gradual recovery. While the markets have softened considerably, regulations that were put in place following the downturn of the early 1990s prevented the kind of leverage in financing the United States is now deal-ing with. For more information on BOMEX, visit www.boma canada.com.

BoMA’s tweeting— Are you Listening?Get the latest news from BOMA International on Twitter. Follow BOMA International President Henry Chamberlain; BOMA Interna-tional Vice President of Codes, Standards and Regulatory Affairs Ron Burton recently tweeted from the International Code Council (ICC) meeting in Baltimore. BOMA International Chair Jim Peck is also tweeting about his travels around the country representing BOMA. And BOMA Vice President of Communications, Marketing & Meetings Lisa Prats is tweeting the latest news and informa-tion about the upcoming BOMA International Conference at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center, June 27-29.

To follow Henry, Ron, Jim or Lisa, create or sign into your Twitter account, and click “follow” under their photos.

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Around the industry

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Are Your Leadership Strategies

in Place to Deal with a

Distressed Market . . .

and a Distressed Staff ?By Laura Horsley

Time to Lead

Here’s a scenario not unfamiliar to property

professionals in today’s marketplace: The budget is being

squeezed even tighter and on the chopping block is staff

training (again), the energy-saving retrofit that has a mere

two-year payback but has been postponed for three years

and two staff positions. Oh, and another tenant has asked

to “negotiate” their upcoming renewal. With the challenges

commercial real estate professionals are facing, some-

times managing a building’s “human” assets can be left

on autopilot.


It’s Impossible to Over Communicate

It’s when the news is bleakest, or might appear to be, that

managers and companies need to revisit the fundamentals

of leadership, regardless of any stress they might be under

themselves. Anthony LoPinto, managing director and CEO

of Equinox Partners, an executive search firm focused exclu-

sively on the real estate industry, is finding that something

that would seem to be very basic is tripping up more than a

few real estate companies as they attempt to lead their way

through the recession. “The single most significant issue that

companies are grappling with is communicating effectively

with employees,” says LoPinto, who recently participated in

Cornell University’s Real Estate Conference where communi-

cation (or the lack thereof) was brought up time and again as

a barrier between management and staff, especially when it

came to issues of retention. “Be transparent,” stresses LoPinto.

“In my experience, it’s the rare executive or leadership that

is enlightened in this area. The effective communicators are

having a much better time managing the motivational issues

within a company.”

Communicating to staff that lay-offs or benefit reductions

are imminent is an unpleasant part of any manager’s job,

but transparency and honesty may translate to increased

respect and even productivity from staff that might be under-

performing due to anxiety or stress. “If you’re in a situation

where there aren’t going to be bonuses or raises, you have to

be honest and upfront,” explains P. Marc Fischer, senior vice

president, director, Management Services, Transwestern. “A

lot of people don’t want to deliver bad news so they don’t say

anything, but then people start gossiping and talking. You

have to continually have the conversation about what’s posi-

tive and negative. People are on edge, especially if they have

seen friends or relatives laid off, and you have to let them

know what’s going on.”

“Do more with less” is one communication being heard

loud and clear by employees, and some are finding this “man-

tra of management” to be overwhelming and hard to meet.

Efficiency improvement requests, though essential, are often

met with a groan when decreed from the top down. Smart

leaders will ask employees to suggest ways to improve effi-

ciency and reduce costs. This bottom-up approach can create

buy-in from the team, especially when there’s some incentive

involved. Notes Fischer, “It pays to ask employees to help find

efficiencies, and it pays to offer a percentage of the savings

back to the employee.”

Constructive communication can come in a variety of ways:

staff meetings, one-on-one discussions, a communication

from the president—and sometimes it needs to come in sev-

eral ways. Chief Operating Officer of Advance Realty Kurt R.

Padavano communicates with staff on a daily basis and, to

ensure that no one is missed, he sends out a monthly e-mail

update to everyone in the company, highlighting market con-

ditions as well as what’s happening across the Advance Realty

portfolio. “The summary-level communication is critical,”

explains Padavano. “There are a lot of employees in different

departments and they may not follow the industry in The Wall

Street Journal or on GlobeSt.com. They need to know what is

going on in the company, and how the economy is impacting

our business plan. They also need to know how leadership

is going to direct the company and position it for recovery.”

The Human AssetAt Berkshire Property Advisors, a multi-family investment

and management firm headquartered in Boston, staff morale

and retention have steadily increased since 2003 and are hold-

ing strong despite the broader market trauma in the resi-

dential sector over the past couple years. The secret of this

company’s success is a progressive employee survey system,

and the actions it inspired. Dan Stravinksi, senior vice presi-

dent of Human Resources at Berkshire, instituted the pro-

gram shortly after he joined the company in 2002 and thinks

it works because it focuses on management behaviors that

employees desire and that make the company successful. “We

came up with 13 dimensions that measure how we are doing

compared to our ideal,” explains Stravinski. “This allowed us

to determine where the gaps are in important areas, such as

setting clear expectations, developing employees and clearly

linking pay with performance.”

The company surveys its employees annually on the 13

dimensions, which make up the Elements of Berkshire Prop-

erty Advisors Culture. The elements range from “vision of

future” and “empowered employees” to “teamwork” and

“work/life balance.” When the first surveys were administered

in 2004, the results revealed gaps as large as three points on a

10-point scale; now, however, Berkshire is at a gap of one or

less on all 13 dimensions. “Our turnover went down signifi-

cantly between 2003 and 2009 because of actions prompted

by the survey,” says Stravinksi, “and we were reducing turnover

even during the good times.”

One outcome of the employee survey system was a property

manager feedback questionnaire that allowed employees to

“Attention is often focused on

physical assets in real estate

instead of the human assets that

are responsible for creating value.

Smart companies realize that, if they

consider their human capital in the

same way, they will get good returns.”Dan Stravinski, Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Berkshire Property Advisors



rank the performance of their managers across a broad range

of expectations, with property managers held accountable for

low rankings and rewarded for excellent rankings. Berkshire

also has a message center where any employee can post ques-

tions to management and expect to get an answer. Stravinksi

notes that the elements of the Berkshire system are not unique

to residential or commercial real estate. “It goes back to the

basics of people management,” says Stravinski. “Attention is

often focused on physical assets in real estate instead of the

human assets that are responsible for creating value. Smart

companies realize that, if they consider their human capital

in the same way, they will get good returns.”

Professional Developmentin a Recession

At Shorenstein Realty Services, an investment and prop-

erty management firm in San Francisco, the human asset is

top-of-mind as the company is taking the somewhat unique

approach to actually invest in its employees during the reces-

sion. At the beginning of 2009, Shorenstein executives did a

national property tour to meet face-to-face with employees,

service advisors and their tenant customers. “We explained

what was happening at the macro level as well as the micro

levels. We asked them how we’re doing and we came away with

lots of good ideas,” says Stanley Roualdes, managing director

of construction and property management at Shorenstein.

Some of those good ideas have meant the company is

rethinking and reinvesting in training and education. “We

have actually added very senior positions to address train-

ing and education and we have reworked all of our business

training modules to make them more user-friendly and Web-

enabled.” Shorenstein has also taken advantage of training

provided through other organizations, including BOMA.

Through BEEP® (BOMA Energy Efficiency Program) alone,

more than 100 Shorenstein employees have been trained.

Shorenstein is not burdened with the crushing debts that

might keep other companies from investing in staff and train-

ing, but they are also not “sitting on assets,” so to speak, and

waiting for a recovery. They are making the human investment

now to be better positioned when the market turns. This strat-

egy also allows Shorenstein to take advantage of a slow cycle

to reinforce its commitment to the professional development

Landing a Job in a distressed Marketsmart companies help their employees broaden their skill set to allow for a transference of skills when times are tight (like now) and employees are asked to work beyond their area of expertise. individuals should be thinking about their professional development in the same way and be prepared to “reinvent” themselves should the need arise. says anthony LoPinto, managing director and Ceo of equinox Partners, “if you’re a developer looking for a job, you’ll find there’s not much development work right now. reinvention is part of the game. You need to step back and look at your background pre-development; maybe you worked in asset management earlier in your career. You’ll need to re-orient your resumé to highlight other experience.”

below are more tips from “a Field guide to a Job search,” a resource put out by LoPinto and equinox Partners with advice for individuals searching for a job during “challenging and dramatically changing times.”

•Relevance. demonstrate how your work experience is relevant and can help address many of the problems (and opportunities) real estate firms are facing today.

•Results. When developing your resumé, focus on results rather than responsibilities. a prospective employer is more interested in what you actually accomplished than in what you were supposed to accomplish.

•netwoRk. network and keep in touch with your existing relationships and important contacts and participate in industry events that give you the opportunity to network with a large number of executives. Check out ken Ferazzi’s “never eat alone” about building a community of colleagues, contacts, friends and mentors.

•link up. social networking sites like Linkedin (www.linkedincom) are becoming powerful tools for posting your resumé and credentials in a way that makes it easy for potential employers, recruiters, business partners or clients to contact you.

•Define YouR online. be sure to concentrate your job search on industry-specific niche sites that have relationships with all of the major industry associations that “power” their career centers. the select Leaders career site focuses on real estate jobs (http://boma.selectleaders.com).

•Be thoughtful. if you land an interview, make yourself stand out from the other candidates by taking the time to do the small, thoughtful things that employers will remember—send a thank you card after the interview or forward an interesting article that relates to your discussions.

“The single most significant issue

that companies are grappling with

is communicating effectively with

employees.”Anthony LoPinto, Managing Director and CEO, Equinox Partners

Visit the boMa Career Center at http://boma.selectleaders.com for the latest job openings in commercial real estate, post resumés and receive guidance, tips and advice.


and education of its staff and helps buoy morale. For Roualdes,

the decision to invest in and promote staff during a recession

is an easy one, especially if it means employees will spend less

time worrying about job security and more time concentrating

on customers and business. “I want them out in the building

meeting with customers,” stresses Roualdes. “Now, especially,

when everyone is struggling to maintain occupancy levels, we

want them talking to tenants in advance.”

Even for organizations not in the enviable position to invest

significant funds and resources in human capital, which is

the vast majority of commercial real estate firms, staff devel-

opment should still be an absolute priority. Budgets may be

slashed, but there are low-cost ways to ensure that training

is not dropped—from hosting luncheon Webinars where 20

employees can participate in a seminar for a flat fee, to asking

a vendor or an in-house expert to instruct a course.

Down markets are often a good time to build business and

innovate around outstanding employees and team members.

For Fischer, times like these present excellent opportunities

to evaluate your team. “When things are going really well, you

may not pay close attention to your hiring decisions. During

the height of the business cycle, it was hard to find qualified

people, and many companies may not have hired the ‘best

and the brightest.’ Now is the time to reevaluate and separate

your strong players, those who can be developed, from your

weaker players.”

Now is also the time to lay out a career and development

path for your star performers. “This is no time to take your eye

off the ball,” Fischer emphasizes. “Poaching is alive and well

and it’s entirely possible that somebody is going to steal talent

from you. In many cases, what keeps those star performers

on your team is showing them a career progression in the

company.” Conversely, knowing that many companies are

cutting benefits and pay, managers should stay closely tuned

to the market for talent that might be seeking a new home.

Leading or Managing?Ultimately, the manager that makes leadership a priority by

communicating and listening to staff will have an enormous

advantage today and a year from today. The manager with

the “they should just be thankful to have a job” attitude that

allows leadership to slip into cruise control could be in for an

unpleasant awakening when the industry recovers and half

the staff has left. Differentiating between good management

and good leadership is key. “A lot of people are good manag-

ers, they can get a project done or handle business operations

well; but great leadership is a requirement for getting through

a cycle like this,” says Padavano. “It’s about long-term vision

and strategy and conducting yourself by example in how hard

you work and your commitment to employees and clients.”

the LittLe thingsWhen monetary incentives such as bonuses, raises or even cost of living increases are slashed, managers are faced with building motivation with seemingly empty hands. this is a time when a simple but genuine “thank you,” “good job” or inexpensive gift token can have a tremendous impact on morale. notes P. Marc Fischer with transwestern, “You have to genuinely appreciate the people who work for you. and yes, those folks would love a trip to the Caribbean or a $1,000 bonus, but often just a sincere thank you or a starbucks gift card can mean the world.” Fischer shares several inexpensive ways to “thank you” that can go a long way…

•thank You from the top. if someone on your team does something exceptional, ask the president of your company to send that individual a signed thank you note congratulating him or her on a job well done.

•score Points at Home. don’t stop at thanking an employee for a great job; also consider sending a note home to a spouse, partner or parent. tell them how much their loved one means to the company, thank them for sharing him/her during an especially busy time and offer a gift card for a family dinner out “on the company.”

•Make it Personal. When recognizing an individual for a job well done, make a point to tailor it to his or her interests or needs. an employee who has a daughter graduating from school might love a comp day around a graduation weekend. another employee who’s a sports fan might appreciate complimentary tickets to a local sporting event.

•Be specific. When publicly recognizing excellence, a “good job, team” is nice, but to make it really special, point out specifically what a team or person did to merit praise.

•Catch someone Doing something Right. keep gift cards handy that you can give employees on the spot when they “get caught doing something right.” the free coffee or lunch the gift card buys are nice, but from a morale standpoint, the recognition is priceless.


In today’s economy, it’s more impor-

tant than ever for building owners and

managers to ensure that they are pre-

serving one of a building’s most critical

assets—the elevators. Having a sound

maintenance program and service con-

tract from a reliable and trusted com-

pany is vital for owners and managers

to stay on top of their capital invest-

ment and minimize shut-downs and

downtime. This not only ensures that

the elevator meets its expected life-cycle

and runs at peak performance, but over

time it can save an owner money.

One way to “elevate” a return on

investment is to consider these seven ele-

ments when selecting an elevator serv-

ice and maintenance provider: expe-

rience, preventative maintenance

frequency, around-the-clock service,

troubleshooting capabilities, inven-

tory of parts, remote monitoring and

modernization.

ExperienceIt is essential for service profession-

als to be knowledgeable and up to date

on all new products and technology,

industry standards and, most impor-

tantly, safety precautions. Participation

in periodic training programs, includ-

ing field programs that are dedicated

to education on new technologies and

local sessions to stay abreast of industry

standards and safety requirements, is

paramount.

Building managers should ensure that

their selected contractor is accredited

to work in their specific market. Some

states require service providers to have

a contractor’s license. Others have spe-

cific licensing programs for the vertical

transportation industry.

Preventative Maintenance Frequency

Even after an elevator’s warranty

expires, it is important it receives

ongoing preventative maintenance to

ensure optimal and safe performance.

This maintenance should involve fast,

reliable service and trained technicians.

It is also important that service pro-

viders evaluate the existing elevator

equipment on a regular basis, as well

as the wear and performance of parts.

Around-the-Clock ServiceMost elevator service providers offer

a monitoring program for the elevator

telephones 24 hours a day, 365 days a

year. Because of the potential impact

of a shut-down on a building’s tenants,

it is critical for building owners and

managers to have a service provider

that responds to service calls both dur-

ing and after business hours, ensuring

reliable response. It is also important to

find out how many service technicians

are available to respond to calls, which

can ultimately improve response time.

When a problem arises, many service

providers guarantee around-the-clock

emergency services. Whether it’s a small

or large building, knowing that a service

provider is dependable no matter the

time of day can grant peace of mind to

any building manager and to the build-

ing’s tenants. As some service contracts

only guarantee 24-hour service in emer-

gency situations, property profession-

als should thoroughly read the service

guidelines to better understand whether

or not around-the-clock service is pro-

vided in non-emergency situations.

Troubleshooting for Multiple Elevators

Property owners and managers with

multiple buildings, which may have

elevators from more than one manu-

facturing company, have an additional

issue to address when selecting an ele-

vator service company. In this case, in

addition to diagnosing problems, the

service provider must be able to trouble-

shoot and fix multiple elevators from

different elevator manufacturing com-

panies. Whether it’s for single or mul-

tiple buildings, service providers that

have the capacity to troubleshoot a

variety of elevators increase the ability

of building managers to streamline the

Elevating Your

Elevator ROI

By Sasha Bailey


maintenance process by only having to

rely on one service provider for all their

elevator-related needs.

Parts InventoryIt is essential to review a service com-

pany’s inventory and evaluate whether

it has adequate access to spare parts, as

well as the appropriate logistics to get

them to the jobsite efficiently. Managers

and owners should examine where the

parts are stored and the maintenance

providers’ delivery process. The hassle

of having to wait for parts to arrive can

be detrimental to business operations,

decreasing the building’s efficiency.

Remote MonitoringRemote monitoring is an innovative

service feature for control systems that

monitors the performance of an eleva-

tor at all times. These systems provide

real-time progress reports that can be

enabled and viewed by service providers

and building managers at any time and

from anywhere. If something out of the

ordinary occurs, or if an elevator stops

performing optimally, the monitoring

system immediately alerts the service

provider, sometimes before a problem

is even exposed to the facility managers,

thus ensuring seamless adjustments and

repair and minimizing costly elevator

downtime. An added bonus is the elimi-

nation of unnecessary service calls and

the accompanying paperwork, which, in

turn, helps decrease an elevator’s envi-

ronmental footprint through a decrease

in both vehicle and paper use.

ModernizationElevator modernization products can

dramatically improve an old elevator’s

performance, as well as its appearance.

Experienced technicians and engineers

can customize a modernization pack-

age that is both energy- and cost-effi-

cient. Here are just a few modernization

options:

Cab Modernization. Installing light-

emitting diodes (LEDs) can save up to

80 percent of the energy costs associated

with traditional elevator lighting. LED

lighting reduces heat loss and increases

life span—in some cases up to 10 years

per light. LEDs also eliminate potential

cab interior fading that can occur over

time due to ultraviolet light. In addi-

tion, they do not contain harmful mer-

cury common in traditional fluorescent

lighting.

Energy savings are further increased

by enabling the elevator controller to

automatically shut off the cab’s lights

and fans when the elevator meets cer-

tain criteria related to inactivity. Accord-

ing to a study conducted by the Swiss

Agency for Energy Efficiency based on

their review of varying elevator types

and models, stand-by energy consump-

tion can account for between 25 and

80 percent of an elevator’s total energy

consumption.

Another consideration is to replace

elevator panels with urea-formalde-

hyde-free (UF-free) panels, which can

improve the indoor air quality of the

building as well.

Upgrading the Motor. Upgrading older

technology, such as upgrading a motor

generator (MG) drive to a newer variable

voltage variable frequency (VVVF) drive,

can save approximately 30 to 40 per-

cent of energy consumption, depend-

ing on the elevator type and size. The

move away from the old MG sets also

eliminates potential indoor air quality

issues associated with carbon dust cre-

ated by the use of carbon brushes in the

machines themselves.

In addition, the oil that has tradi-

tionally been used in hydraulic eleva-

tors can be replaced with biodegradable

hydraulic oil, designed to minimize

environmental impact.

reCyCling energy. Another modern-

ization strategy involves putting some

of the elevator’s unused energy back

into the building. This can be done by

installing regenerative drives. The power

that is transferred back into the build-

ing would traditionally be dissipated via

heat into the machine room. With the

regenerative drive, the excess energy is

captured and reused, and the system

also reduces costly traditional cooling

of the elevator machine room.

Having a sound preventive mainte-

nance program and engaging a high-

quality service provider maximizes

elevator performance and ensures that

the equipment is maintained to the

highest of industry standards. Eleva-

tors that run at peak performance use

less energy, improve building efficiency,

increase overall property value and are

more likely to meet their maximum life-

cycle, giving property owners and man-

agers peace of mind.

about the author: Sasha Bailey, LEED AP, is a corporate sustainability manager in ThyssenKrupp Elevator’s Americas Business Unit. She can be contacted via e-mail at Sasha.Bailey@thyssen krupp.com.

As some service contracts

only guarantee 24-hour

service in emergency

situations, property

professionals should

thoroughly read the

service guidelines to better

understand whether or not

around-the-clock service is

provided in non-emergency

situations.

Installing light-emitting

diodes (LEDs) can save up

to 80% of the energy costs

associated with traditional

elevator lighting. LED

lighting reduces heat loss

and increases life span—in

some cases up to 10 years

per light.


By Lindsay Tiffany

Since the first skyscrapers began

shaping our city skylines, BOMA has set

the standard when it comes to measur-

ing buildings. The first office building

measurement standard was released

in 1915 by BOMA International, then

known as the National Association

of Building Owners and Managers

(NABOM), as property profession-

als were figuring out how to maintain

and operate the new buildings hitting

urban markets. Nearly a century later,

the “BOMA Standard” remains property

professionals’ go-to source when mea-

suring space to calculate leases, allo-

cate building expenses and compare

occupancy.

Before year’s end, BOMA Interna-

tional will release the highly anticipated

Office Buildings: Standard Methods of

Measurement & Calculating Rentable

Area. The new office measurement stan-

dard provides important improvements

and changes to the Standard Method for

Measuring Floor Area in Office Build-

ings, the last office measurement stan-

dard released in 1996. The new publi-

cation has several key enhancements

that aim to simplify the methodologies,

clarify gray areas and make it more user-

friendly. BOMA International’s Stan-

dard Floor Measurement Committee,

co-chaired by William B. Tracy, MBA,

NCARB, principal metrologist, Build-

ing Area Measurement LLC, and Kent

Gibson, CPM, vice president, Zions

Security Corporation and secretary/

treasurer of BOMA International, spent

more than two years in twice weekly

meetings to bring the new version to

the marketplace.

Tracy emphasizes that BOMA

changed the previous version of the

standard to reflect what many people

were already doing in the marketplace.

“There are a lot of people out there

who needed to do something different

than the current BOMA office standard

allowed them to do, and were thus using

what were considered ‘modified’ ver-

sions of the standard. In developing

this new version, we’ve listened to what

people are doing—how they are leasing

and evaluating space—and we’ve made

changes based on what’s actually going

on in the industry,” he explains.

Single Load Factor DefinedThe single biggest change to the stan-

dard is that it now includes two methods

for calculating load factors. Method A,

or the legacy method, allows users the

option outlined in the 1996 standard,

under which each floor in a building

has its own load factor. Method B, or

the single load factor method, provides

property professionals with a method-

ology that allows them to use a single

load factor for all floors of a building.

The total rentable areas of the building

are the same in both methods; Method

B simply manipulates the way rentable

area is allocated through the floors of

the building so all floors have the same

load factor.

The single load factor method will

greatly simplify leasing calculations for

building owners and managers. “One

of the biggest issues with the current

standard is that the load factor is dif-

ferent for every floor of a building,”

notes Gibson. “When a landlord makes

a proposal to a tenant, they’re not sure

which load factor the tenant is going to

bear until they figure out where to place

the tenant. That has posed a problem

for brokers, and that has posed a prob-

lem for property managers. Now, if you

select Method B, you can put a tenant

on any floor or move them from floor

to floor, and the load factor will remain

the same.”

The committee hopes that the single

load factor method will also facilitate

clearer communication between prop-

erty managers, architects, contractors,

appraisers and other parties who mea-

sure space. Tracy adds, “We’re hoping

it will eliminate those instances where

someone hires an architect, the archi-

tect measures the space and their square

footage is different than the landlord’s

square footage because the architect

didn’t understand the measurement

method. With a clearer measurement

standard, there will be fewer disputes

and misunderstandings.”

BOMA Sets the Standard: Simplifying Gross Area

As BOMA International’s Standard Floor Measurement Committee began revising the 1996 office measurement standard, its members realized there was a need for a clearer explanation of how to calculate the gross area of a building. This past June, BOMA International released Gross Area Measurement of a Building (GRAMS), a stand-alone publication that provides a uniform basis for measuring both the construction gross area and the exte-rior gross area of office, retail, indus-trial, single- and multi-unit residential, hospitality, entertainment, public and institutional buildings. GRAMS is also especially useful for property manag-ers when leasing a building to a single tenant based on gross area. GRAMS features an interactive downloadable format with 37 illustrations and 19 definitions of measurement terms.

For more information on GRAMS, the new Office Standard or the entire BOMA family of standards, visit http://shop.boma.org.

Setting New Standards

New Floor Measurement Methodology Option looks to Simplify Lease Calculations


Another feature of the new standard

is the introduction of a market cap, or

a cap on the load factors that will bring

load factors into a range where the

building is leasable in its market, which

will be particularly helpful for histori-

cal buildings. “One thing we struggled

with is what happens when you finish

all these measurements and your load

factor is really high? The new standard

introduces a market cap that will help

buildings with very high load factors

stay competitive,” remarks Gibson.

Making Measuring EasierThe new standard addresses regional

leasing practices, which will be advan-

tageous for buildings in warm cli-

mates. Previously, only spaces that

were enclosed within a building could

be included in measurement calcula-

tions, even though many buildings in

southern areas were built with exter-

nal corridors. A new clause states that,

if external corridors are the only way

tenants can access their space, property

managers can include them as building

common areas and, therefore, include

them in their common area mainte-

nance allocations.

The standard is also updated with

new terminology that the committee

hopes will eliminate ambiguity. The

new terms conform to those used by

the Open Standards Consortium for Real

Estate (OSCRE), a group that is trying

to standardize real estate terminology

worldwide. Gibson thinks the new lan-

guage may take some getting used to

but will be useful. “I think learning the

new lingo is going to be one challenge

for property managers. For instance, the

term ‘common area’ is going away, and

instead we’re using more specific terms

like ‘service area’ and ‘amenity area.’ By

changing the language, we’ve eliminated

some of the gray areas.”

In their quest for greater clarity and

ease of use, the committee has updated

the standard with a variety of 21st cen-

tury enhancements that will make the

methodologies easier to understand and

interpret. The new document will be an

interactive PDF, with a text portion, defi-

nitions and an illustration section. Users

will be able to zoom in on full-color

illustrations to get a closer look at how

classes of space transition. They are also

provided with a hyperlink to definitions

and illustrations when cited in the text.

Gibson thinks users will find the

updates to the global summary of

areas (the section that explains how

load factors and other measurements

are derived) very useful. “People found

it very difficult to recreate the spread-

sheet in the ’96 standard, as there wasn’t

sample data and the formulas weren’t

included. The new version includes

two worksheets, one that shows sample

data and another that explains all the

formulas. Now, it’s very easy to set up a

spreadsheet that will calculate the rent-

able area and load factors.”

The 1996 version of the standard also

came with a supplementary document

called The Answers to 26 Key Questions

about the ANSI/BOMA Standard Method

of Measuring Floor Area in Office Build-

ings. The committee streamlined the

new version by incorporating all of

those commonly asked questions right

into the document, making it easier to

[ i ]

o f f i c e b u i l d i n g s :

standard methods of measurement and calculating rentable area

building owners and managers association (boma) international

www.boma.org

understand. “There are a lot of people

out there who are going to say, ‘This

went from a 27-page document to an

80-page document. What happened?’

The reason is really all the additional

clarity we included. The definitions,

the illustrations, the formulas—it’s all

spelled out for you,” says Tracy.

As the committee prepares to send the

standard to the American National Stan-

dards Institute for its stamp of approval,

they feel they have ultimately come up

with a document that will make mea-

suring buildings easier. “I can’t begin

to tell you how many hours have been

volunteered to come up with this new

standard, and we believe it is a big step

forward from the existing standard. As

with anything new, we’re holding our

breath. We think we’ve done our best

to add clarity, answer most of the ques-

tions that could come up and simplify

property professionals’ jobs,” says Tracy.

For more information or to order

Office Buildings: Standard Methods of

Measurement & Calculating Rentable

Area, visit http://shop.boma.org.


Sector watch

WITH AN INVENTORY of more than 350 million square feet in 8,600 owned and leased buildings across the country, you can imagine that, as the landlord for federal civilian agencies, food service is a significant concern for the Public Buildings Service (PBS). More than one million employees and contractors work in these buildings, which range from tra-ditional office space to courthouses, labs and land ports of entry. And that’s not counting the visitors and general public that are served as well.

To meet these needs, PBS provides food service in a number of ways, from vending machines, sundry stands, pre-packaged snack bars and on-site snack bars to full-service cafeterias, cafés and food courts. We first assess whether enlisting services in the area will meet our employees’ needs. If not, we decide the size and type of the new operation required and then solicit and select from proposals submitted by vendors.

A significant change many are see-ing—both in the public- and private-sector real estate business—is the exploding awareness of wellness and sustainability. This awareness will mean significant changes in our contracts for food services.

The wellness issue was given a par-ticularly high profile when President Obama challenged all federal agencies to improve the health of federal employ-ees. The focus on sustainability, on the other hand, has been a priority at GSA

Food for thought

A fruit stand at the the EM Dirksen Federal Courthouse Café in Chicago, Ill.

Sustainable services. Vendors will also be asked to incorporate green food and sustainable services, including organic and locally sustainable prod-ucts, recycling, composting, food dona-tion programs, energy-saving practices, cleaning services adhering to Green Seal environmental standards and alignment of their operations with the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building rating system.

In surveys, the majority of tenants are satisfied with vending and food service cafés in GSA-controlled spaces. That’s good, but GSA wants to do even better. As the premier public real estate orga-nization in the nation, we regard food service operations in federal buildings as opportunities to showcase our customer service skills to tenants, to improve the health and wellness of federal employees and to extend our green and sustainable agenda.

about the author: Anthony E. Costa is deputy commissioner for the U.S. General Services Ad-ministration’s Public Buildings Service (PBS), where he oversees one of the nation’s largest public real estate organizations with a portfo-lio of 354 million square feet housing more than one million federal employees. He can be reached at [email protected].

since the 1970s. What, perhaps, is new is that these have come together as stan-dards in the execution of our food serv-ice contracts. Moreover, we think this approach is emerging as the norm in the real estate industry. Here are some spe-cific things PBS is doing to merge well-ness and sustainability.

rFPs for new contracts. This year, we are initiating a pilot program to con-vert existing food service contracts to new wellness/sustainability-focused contracts. The idea is to phase in the new criteria as contracts come up for renewal. At press time, the first Request for Proposal for the new contract model was scheduled to go out October 2009. The RFP is for a cafeteria in the Depart-ment of Interior Washington, D.C., head-quarters that will be up and running in May 2010.

contract deliverables. The new con-tracts will have the flexibility to adapt to local market offerings and consumer demand, ensuring adequate competi-tion and successful vendor operations. Healthier menu options, menu variety to address customer needs, product placement to encourage healthy choices, nutrition information, hormone-free products, elimination or reduction of trans-fatty acids and saturated fats and the use of a nutritionist or dietician in the development of menus are among the contract deliverables vendors will be asked to meet.

5 Strategies for healthier Food options in Your Building

1. Make healthier options and sustainability part of your food service contracts.

2. refine your healthier options/sustainable criteria to reflect the local market and con-sumer demand.

3. communicate to your staff and tenants about your health-ier food service products.

4. Use your building’s design of the space to celebrate and showcase your healthier food options.

5. Integrate your healthier food service options into a com-prehensive program related to wellness and green design.

GSa Merges wellness and Sustainability through Food ServiceBy Anthony Costa

KEEP GROWINGYOUR LEED CREDENTIAL SETS THE COURSE FOR

LEADING YOUR INDUSTRY.

www.gbci.org

AS A LEED GREEN ASSOCIATE OR AP WITH A SPECIALTY, YOU CAN DISTINGUISH YOURSELF AND TRANSFORM YOUR CAREER.

BOmA.indd 1 10/20/2009 11:32:52 AM


trends tracker

IN THE HEART OF DOWNTOWN SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ., is an urban oasis that calls to mind the Hanging Gardens of the ancient world: Optima Camelview Village. While it would be an overstatement to claim that Optima Camelview Village is a new World Wonder, the project has yielded some pretty wonder-ful results that property and landscape managers might want to pay attention to.

Camelview Village is a 14-acre mixed-use development that includes nearly 700 individually designed private terraces and a green roof that spans the majority of the 11-building com-munity. The integrated landscape design of Camelview Village is the brainchild of architect and developer David Hovey and

Creating a Sustainable Urban Oasis…in the Desertcase study of camelview VillageBy Robert Schiller

was created with vital input from Dr. Chris A. Martin, professor of Horticulture at Arizona State University (ASU). While nowhere near the scale of the ancient Hanging Gardens it calls to mind, a green development of this magnitude—in the Arizona desert—is still an impressive achievement.

“Good landscape management integrates plants and land-scape design into the entire project rather than merely deco-rating around the edges as an afterthought,” says Tyler Storey, a landscape and garden coach in Phoenix. “A real living environ-ment is created when the constructed elements and growing elements of the living environment are two parts of the same whole.”

The original vision for the constructed elements of the project was supplied by Optima and Hovey, but, ultimately, everything hinged on being able to create and implement a site-specific plan that allowed the growing elements to flourish within an urban context. For this, Optima turned to Dr. Martin, who exam-ined every aspect of the proposed development and recom-mended plants for the project based on intended use, climate, soil depth, lighting and water and fertilization requirements.

Test planting beds were developed to meet the unique plant requirements, which included various sun exposures as well as limited planting depths. Planting beds were built to accommo-date depth requirements (six inches) and soil types, complete with drainage and automatic watering systems. To create the various sunlight conditions that the plants would be growing in, walls and covers were used to shade the plants and a window pane was used to reflect the light to create sunny conditions. Heat and moisture sensors were installed in the test beds to monitor soil conditions year-round. This information was used to determine the final plant palette.

Once the palette was decided upon, ISS Grounds Control installed the landscape and collaborated with Optima to refine the original designs as needed. The entire grounds are watered by a computer-managed, two-wire irrigation control system including an automated fertilization system, which supplies calculated amounts of water and nutrients to the plants. By using semi-arid, native and semi-native plants and trees, the team was able to create a sustainable environment in the harsh desert climate.

Unlike Nebuchadnezzar who conquered nature and created the Hanging Gardens through sheer imperial force, an urban oasis in Scottsdale was created through the power of good land-scape management and focused effort.

Property and landscape managers are paying close atten-tion to the success of Optima Camelview Village, where the careful planning and skillful implementation of an integrated landscape design have created an oasis in the desert that is beneficial for the environment and for the people associated with it. Property owners and tenants are saving money through the use of green rooftops by reducing both energy consumption and heat radiation.

This project has been recognized with five awards for out-standing creative and sustainable work, including the national Environmental Improvement Grand Award by Professional Landcare Network (PLANET).

about the author: Robert Schiller is vice president of sales and marketing with ISS Facility Services, which provides facility management, cleaning and property services (including landscape maintenance and construction, sup-port services, catering and security) to more than 50 countries around the world. He can be reached at [email protected].

The mixed-use community of Camelview incorporates semi-arid, native and semi-native plants and trees to create a sustainable environment in the Arizona desert.

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Green Scene

“GREEN IS HERE TO STAY” was the catchphrase of the Apartment and Office Building Association of Met-ropolitan Washington (AOBA)’s 2009 Green Conference, held September 30 in D.C. The conference featured a vari-ety of solutions for property profession-als from around the region who, feeling the crunch of a distressed market, are looking for ways to green their buildings while saving time and money. Attendees came away with ideas and resources to help them implement green strategies and a big-picture perspective of how the green movement will transform real estate in the future.

Lessons from Top LeadersThe program kicked off with a key-

note address from Marc Gunther, con-tributing editor for Fortune magazine, touching on the lessons commercial real estate companies can learn from lead-ing American companies like Google, GE and Wal-Mart. He emphasized that green is not going away, and that the real estate industry is “going to have to embrace it.” He noted that the most successful organizations in the commercial real estate industry will be those who follow the lead of Fortune 500 companies by proactively integrating green strategies into their company philosophy.

Gunther emphasized that the gov-ernment is the “single biggest driver of green right now.” He looks to the increasing involvement and regulation from agencies like the U.S. Department of Energy and the Environmental Pro-tection Agency as proof. He added that many companies have put green ini-tiatives on the back burner as they are facing other issues due to poor market conditions; however, once the recession passes, customers and the government will be asking companies about their green initiatives and it is wise to be pre-pared. Sustainability is also a key fac-tor in recruiting young talent, Gunther stressed, because “young people want to be part of companies that are solv-ing, or at least trying to solve, the climate change problem.”

Jay Fisette of the Arlington, Va., County Board, Thomas James of GSA and Eileen Lee of the National Multi Housing Council discuss cap and trade, energy mandates and regional sustainabil-ity goals.

AOBA Green Conference Focuses on Smart Solutions

Number Crunching: ROI and Payback Period

Attendees also heard from green guru P. Marc Fischer, CPM, RPA, CCIM, senior vice president, director, management services, Transwestern, in the session “Beyond the Basics: ‘Shovel Ready’ Ideas and Resources.” The session examined sustainability strategies that require a bigger investment and longer payback period than the typical “low-hanging fruit” tactics, but that yield high-impact results and good return on investment (ROI). Fischer covered topics like per-meable concrete, green roofs, low-flow toilets, composting, energy demand management and integrated pest management.

Fischer stressed that property man-agers should take a close look at the payback period and ROI when deciding what makes sense for a specific property. While the numbers don’t substantiate redoing a three-year-old roof in order to put in a green roof, he suggested a green roof might be something to consider when doing a planned replacement. He also talked about the importance of ten-ant buy in, as the success of many green initiatives is determined by the end-user.

Green AheadA panel discussion on cap and trade,

energy mandates and regional sustain-ability goals rounded out the program,

featuring speakers Thomas James, dep-uty regional commissioner-property development, Public Buildings Service-National Capitol Region, U.S. General Services Administration (GSA); Jay Fisette, vice chair, Arlington, Va., County Board; and Eileen Lee, vice president of energy and environmental policy, National Multi Housing Council. James and Fisette gave a regional perspective on green issues. James stated that, of the $5.5 billion in Recovery Act money for GSA, $1.2 million is slated for use in the Washington, D.C., area, which will mean opportunities for public-private partnerships around the area. Fisette outlined Arlington, Va., County Board’s incentive program, which encourages private developers of large office, high-rise residential and mixed-use projects to design, construct and operate envi-ronmentally responsible buildings.

Lee presented the national per-spective, stressing that, though there is ongoing debate about how to value green properties in the marketplace, most properties’ bottom lines can be improved by implementing green prac-tices. She also underscored the impor-tance of government incentives for major green projects. She stated that for no- and low-cost green measures, the savings that result from implementation serve as the incentive; however, in order to execute expensive retrofits, the indus-try needs tax breaks and other programs to make them feasible. Lee ended by pre-dicting that, while the Waxman-Markey bill currently pending in Congress may not pass, cap-and-trade legislation will likely get pushed through in the future and stressed that commercial real estate firms should be ready. The government is looking for ways to cut carbon emis-sions and, as buildings account for nearly 40 percent of those emissions, “commercial real estate is ripe for the picking,” she said.

By Lindsay Tiffany

Lee predicted that, while the Waxman-Markey bill currently pending in congress may not pass, cap-and-trade legislation will likely get pushed through in the future and stressed that commercial real estate firms should be ready.

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ReseaRch coRneR

THE HEADLINES ARE UNMISTAKABLE: The retail sector is taking a beating. The conditions of a distressed real estate market, combined with a sharp drop in consumer spending, means that retail tenancies and income from those tenan-cies are in decline. While media reports have focused on how the retail sector will be hard hit, office properties that house retail space will also feel the effects. Negative absorption in most markets across the country is putting strain on rent from office space as well. All told, property managers will face mounting pressure on office net operating income (NOI) in 2009.

BOMA International’s 2009 Experience Exchange Report (EER), which analyzes office building income and expenses for 2008, illustrates that income from office rent increased modestly last year. Income from office rent in 2008 increased roughly seven percent from the previous year, growing from an aver-age of $23.70 to $25.37 per square foot.

At the same time, income from retail rent experienced a significant decline. Average income from retail areas in 2007 were $23.39 per square foot, while in 2008 it was only $20.45 per square foot (a drop of 12.6 percent). The data was from a control sample comprised of buildings that submitted data in both 2007 and 2008, where occupancy levels did not change by more than 15 percent and total rentable area (TRA) also did not change by more than 10 percent. It is important to note that the EER tracks data primarily related to office buildings;

thus, only properties with 70 percent or more of their total rentable area devoted to office activities are included in the report.

Retail Office Area DefinedTotal retail rentable area includes any

space used for selling services or mer-chandise and involves face-to-face inter-action with the general public. Such ten-ants could include banks, travel agen-cies, insurance providers, merchandise stores and cafeterias.

Office space is the largest component of rentable space for EER survey respon-dents. In 2008, retail space made up only 1.5 percent of total rentable space. This share has notably decreased, from 2.7 percent in 2007 and two percent in 2006.

While retail area comprises a relatively small percentage of total rentable area in the EER data set, it nevertheless rep-resents an important income stream for these assets and property owners are surely experiencing shortfalls in income.

Methodology and Data Sample Demographic Profile

The data used to examine trends for retail space were compiled using a control sample from properties that reported having retail floor space and that have submitted data to the EER for both 2007 and 2008. This methodology generated a sample of more than 200 buildings. To be included in the perfor-mance indicator comparison, the prop-erties needed to have reported data in those categories for both years for which comparisons are made. This reduced the sample even further. Of the roughly 200 buildings in the sample, 27 percent were located in the Western United States, closely followed by those in the East (26.5 percent), the Midwest (25.1 per-cent) and the South (20 percent). Build-ings contained an average total of retail floor space of 23,000 square feet, with about 68 percent located downtown and the remainder in suburban areas.

The chart below indicates that build-ings with retail space reported signifi-cant erosion in key performance metrics. While total retail space remained largely unchanged, average retail rental income declined from more than 23 percent per building in 2008 to close to 18 percent in 2007 based on square footage. Build-ing owners also reported a 70-percent

Performance Indicator 2007 2008 Change % Change

Total Retail Space 5.0 5.0 0 0%(millions of rentable square feet, or rsf)

Average Retail Rental Income per bldg ($) 462,359 354,836 -107,523 -23.3%

Average Retail Rental Income/rsf ($) 29.72 24.49 -5.23 -17.6%

Average No. Retail Tenants per building 20 6 -14 -70.0%

Average Occupied Retail Area per tenant** 2,639 3,068 429 16.2%

** The average occupied retail area per tenant is computed by first calculating the actual occupied

square footage of each building in the sample by multiplying the retail area by the occupancy rate. The

occupied square footage is then summed and divided by the total number of retail tenants in the sample.

Private-Sector Retail Rentable Area Performance (2007-2008)

Declining Income From Retail Could Mean More Pressure on Office NOIBy Noel Popwell


Want to know about office building performance?

The EER is more affordable, flexible and easier than ever now that it’s online. With a few quick clicks, you can have all the income and per-

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one easy transaction. Find out more at www.bomaeer.org.

decline in retail tenants, with an average of six tenants per building in 2008 com-pared to 20 per building in 2007.

What’s AheadIn the August issue of Cycle Monitor

magazine, economist Dr. Glenn Mueller reports that retail rents and occupancy declined almost two percent in the sec-ond quarter of 2009, and both were down by close to five percent over the same period last year. He predicts that retail occupancies will decline by almost two percent and rents by eight percent in 2009. This analysis, along with the fall off in retail sales and news of the bankrupt-cies of some large retail conglomerates, paints a dismal picture of the retail office market for 2009 and beyond.

In addition to the additional pres-sure it puts on NOI, the decline in retail tenancies and income from retail areas also underscores how difficult the cur-rent market cycle will be for the office sector in coming months. Most ana-lysts agree that the office market typi-cally lags behind other indicators of eco-nomic activity during times of recession. Therefore, the results from the EER data for retail office space may well be a har-binger of what’s in store in the broader cross-section of commercial real estate in 2010.

While there is some evidence that the recession has hit bottom, several key indicators that would spell improve-ments in the retail sector have not yet experienced a turnaround. Media reports suggest that consumer spending is still severely curtailed and consumer confidence remains low. The unemploy-ment rate continues to rise, albeit more slowly than it did in the first two quarters of the year. Building owners and manag-ers should follow these benchmarks, as improvement in the retail sector could relieve some pressure on NOI and may indicate that a recovery for office is not too far behind.

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EyE on Education

WITH DOUBLE-DIGIT VACANCY RATES, limited access to capital and a fundamental lack of liquidity, the com-mercial real estate industry is facing a perfect storm that will likely leave a trail of distressed assets in its wake. Com-panies are increasingly finding them-selves unable to refinance their assets, and when they can, interest rates are sky-high. What is more, experts predict that the worst of the credit crisis has yet to hit the office sector. But the fallout is expected soon: An average of $400 billion in maturing debt is expected to roll into 2010. Although the vast major-ity of lenders still choose foreclosures and workouts for their distressed assets, there is a small but steady increase of assets going into receivership.

In the case of receivership, the lender takes back ownership of the asset because the owner cannot cover debt service. In receivership, not only is the ownership relinquished, but the prop-erty’s debt is also carried over. While the task of guiding an asset through the receivership process is often daunting, property managers can simplify their responsibilities by understanding the lender’s goals for the asset and imple-menting the new asset management plan.

Most lenders are reluctant to man-age the assets they take back, as they typically know little about the business of property management. Depending on the scenario, the lender may either

maintain the current property manage-ment firm or hire a new one. Many prop-erty management firms have even devel-oped specialized programs to manage distressed assets, and are actively pur-suing opportunities with various lend-ers. Those firms that manage the asset in receivership may also find brokerage opportunities, as some distressed assets may need to be leased up.

Once the lender has decided an asset will go into receivership, they develop an asset management plan for the build-ing. The planning usually involves a thorough review of the asset—a process very similar to the due diligence undertaken by potential buyers when seeking to acquire an asset. All aspects of the asset must be examined: occu-pancy and vacancy; lease rollover; asset integrity, including structural and oper-ating system functionality; and capital planning. Many property management firms can assist with this process, as they have first-hand experience managing the financial and operational perfor-mance of assets.

The assets the property manager will inherit may be leased or vacant. Many assets in receivership are performing assets occupied by tenants who pay their rent on time. When managers are charged with managing a leased asset, tenant relations play an important role in propping up the value of the asset. Property managers will serve as the pri-mary tenant contact, alleviating their

The Other Option for Distressed Assets: What Property Professionals Should Know about Receivership

concerns and providing insight into how their leases and overall building operations may be affected by changes in ownership.

In cases where the asset is not fully leased, the property manager will likely be involved in the lease up proc-ess, which can be complicated by the financing and loan structures that are in place. Understanding the key financ-ing elements that dictate leasing plans and terms is vital for property manag-ers involved in leasing a distressed asset. Property managers will also likely be charged with reviewing other aspects of the asset’s financial and operational performance, as they work to provide the lender with information needed to get the building back in the black. Until the storm passes and the industry rebounds, property managers will play a vital role in helping bring distressed assets back to life.

Learn more about how to prepare for and manage assets through receivership when BOMA hosts a Webinar, “Managing Assets in Receivership”, during Winter 2010. Visit www.boma.org/Training AndEducation/Webinars for more information.

For a complete listing of BOMA’s education programs, go to: www.boma.org/TrainingAndEducation /upcomingeducation/Pages/default.aspx.

By Kristin Bowling


upcoming BoMa eventsFoundations of Real Estate Management courses are being offered by BOMA local associations throughout the country, from Orange County, Calif., to Washing-ton, D.C. Please view the education calendar at www.boma.org for more information or contact Emily Naden at [email protected].

November 18: Tenant Financial Distress, Webinar, 2:00pm ET

Winter 2010 (Date TBA): Managing Assets in Receiver-ship, Webinar, 2:00pm ET

February 1-4, 2010: Winter Business Meeting and National Issues Conference, Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.

May 5-7, 2010: Medical Office Buildings and Health-care Facilities Conference, Hyatt Regency, Chicago, Ill.

June 27-29, 2010: The BOMA International Con-ference and The Every Building Show, Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center, Los Angeles County, Calif.

For detailed information on BOMA educational offer-ings, contact Emily Naden at [email protected] or visit www.boma.org/TrainingAndEducation

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buyers’ guide

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Rubbermaid Introduces Hygen Microfiber Cleaning ProgramRubbermaid Commercial Products has introduced a comprehensive microfiber cleaning program. The Rubbermaid® Hygen™ System features 100-percent premium quality split microfiber for maintaining healthy, safe environments in commercial buildings. The system includes innovative textiles for dry and wet cleaning, unique hardware (such as handles and frames that help maximize productivity and value) and buckets and carts designed to enhance productivity and cleaning power.

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conference connection

Alisa Molyneauxreal estate ManagercB richard ellisWashington, D.c.“The BOMA conference was an incredible experience for me. I had the chance to net-work with other commercial real estate professionals from all over the world. The trade-show was perfect for one-on-ones with product and service providers in a more relaxed atmosphere than everyday property management.”

roy B. toguchi iiSenior Property Managercolliers Monroe friedlanderHonolulu, Hawaii“For a first-timer attending the BOMA conference and tradeshow, it has proved to be an excellent opportunity to network with others in the industry. It has also pro-vided many opportunities to participate in educational seminars and potential part-nerships with the numerous product/service providers at the tradeshow.”

Learn more about the 2010 BoMA international conference and the every Building Show at www.bomaconvention.org

new for 2010: california Day California is home not only to the 2010 BOMA International Conference, but to several of the largest commercial real estate markets and compa-nies in the industry. It’s a bell-wether state that sets trends for markets across the coun-try. We’re saluting the local host state with a special edu-cation track for practitioners who are located in or doing business in California. From California’s state regulatory climate to innovative operat-ing practices, California Day will showcase what works in the Golden State.

the every Building ShowThe BOMA network con-

nects you to the companies you want to reach. From the major national players to the small boutique firms, these companies represent every building type, from high-rise office buildings to industrial properties. They choose The Every Building Show because they know they will be able to see the products, services and technologies they need in an atmosphere designed for presenting cutting-edge solu-tions, exchanging information and making key purchasing decisions.

Don’t take our Word for it

Peter MerrettGeneral Managertower 42London, england“We are extremely proud of our association with BOMA, and have enjoyed building an international relationship between North America and the UK. The annual conven-tion is a first-class opportu-nity for sharing best practices, benchmarking industry stan-dards of property manage-ment and comparing current market trends. We learn a great deal from the compre-hensive education sessions and always take home many new contacts and initiatives from the tradeshow.”

Steve WhitcombBuilding engineerrreefSan francisco, calif.“The BOMA conference and tradeshow was an eye-open-ing experience for me. For the first time, I was able to see things from the perspective of management—how they weigh costs, benefits and tim-ing in making decisions about maintenance and mechani-cal improvements. I received some excellent ideas from the education sessions, par-ticularly in the area of tenant relations.”

ATTENDEES OF THE 2009 BOMA INTERNATIONAL CONFER-ENCE know why you can’t afford to miss the 2010 BOMA Inter-national Conference in Greater Los Angeles. We heard it again and again; it’s all about the “BOMA Network”—that powerful

resource of industry peers that share ideas, problem-solve and find solutions together.

Feel the power of the BOMA Network. What past attendees are saying . . .

HERE ARE JUST FOUR WAYS GRAMS CAN HELP YOU:• Get on the same page. GRAMS uniform methodology helps a cross section of

industry professionals—architects, appraisers, general contractors, owners, and the list goes on—do their jobs better because it provides a actionable document for practitioners to measure gross area.

• Get comprehensive. GRAMS applies to all buildings—offi ce, retail, industrial, single and multi-unit residential, hospitality, entertainment, and public and private institutional buildings. Plus, GRAMS applies to both new and existing buildings.

• Get a “twofer.” GRAMS provides a uniform basis for measuring both the construction gross area and the exterior gross area of a building.

• Get what you want. GRAMS meets an important and growing industry demand for a true methodology for measuring gross area.

From the fi rst skyscrapers to modern industrial complexes, BOMA has been defi ning the way commercial real estate professionals measure their properties for nearly 95 years. The latest edition to the BOMA family of standards, The Gross Areas of a Building: Methods of Measurement (GRAMS), provides a uniform basis from which to compute, communicate and compare the measurement of buildings by gross areas, and offers the industry’s fi rst direct measure of the physical size of a building.

A GRAND STANDARD FOR MEASURING GROSS AREA

G R O S S A R E A S O F A B U I L D I N G : M E T H O D S O F M E A S U R E M E N T

BOMA Sets the Standard. Order BOMA’s gross area measurement standard, The Gross Areas of a Building: Methods of Measurement, or the other measurement stan-dards from the BOMA family of standards–Offi ce Buildings: Methods of Measurement and Calculating Rentable Area; Standard Methods for Measuring Floor Area in Industrial Buildings; and Unifi ed Approach for Measuring Offi ce Space: For Use in Facility and Property Management.

The interactive downloadable format of GRAMS features 37 illustrations and 19 defi nitions of measurement terms.

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