The Hampshire Companies, a full-service, private real estate investment firm with equity in assets valued at more than $2.5 billion, has been awarded the highly coveted Developer of the Year award from the New Jersey Chapter of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). Hampshire received the award for its dedication to sustainability at the Eleventh Annual USGBC Gala and Awards Dinner on Wednesday, October 9, 2013, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark.
The award was given to Hampshire for its impressive set of sustainability principles and guidelines. Hampshire strives to make the necessary long-term commitment to understanding, educating, and integrating the values of sustainability and responsible investing into its management, culture, and operations. The firm was also honored for its efforts to proactively seek ways to cost effectively limit the environmental footprint of the firm’s operations and assets, while maintaining the primary obligation as fiduciary to investors.
“We are committed to sustainability and to educating our tenants, partners, consultants, and employees as to the benefits of green building efforts and strive to reduce the energy use, water consumption, and waste production of the firm’s assets, where practicable,” said James E. Hanson II, President & CEO of The Hampshire Companies. “We look for opportunities to educate and encourage tenants to adopt environmentally sensitive operating procedures within their spaces and empower all of our employees to develop sustainability expertise.”
Recent sustainably-focused projects completed by The Hampshire Companies include One Buckingham Ave in Perth Amboy, N.J. Hampshire set out to reduce tenant operating expenses with limited upfront capital to enable the tenant to stay in the building. Utilizing both state and federal grants, Hampshire was able to offset the initial capital required to install the 58,000-square-foot array of T-10 solar roof tiles, which provide a power capacity of 758 kilowatt-peak (kwP). As result, the tenant was able to stay in the building, keeping more than 100 manufacturing jobs in Perth Amboy, NJ. The solar system has generated 770 megawatt hours, enough energy to power 64 homes a year, within the first year.
Upon redeveloping the CENTRA building at Metro Park, Hampshire worked to transform the site by taking the existing building down to the steel, rebuilding it and expanding it by approximately 10,000 square feet. Today, CENTRA at MetroPark is one of the premier, LEED certified 21st Century office developments in the state ultimately transforming the suburban office experience and raising the bar on sustainable, Class A office space.
In another example, Hampshire took an existing, functionally obsolete property located at 175 Park Avenue in Madison, NJ and redeveloped it into a LEED Silver Certified, state-of-the-art, headquarters-quality office building, featuring a full range of amenities, including a fitness center, walking trail, full-service café, covered parking, and conference/team room facilities. The 270,000-square-foot building is equipped with cutting-edge green roof technology, energy efficient mechanical systems, and high efficiency plumbing fixtures, designed to be sensitive to the neighborhood and its surrounding natural environment. With a series of open-air, garden courtyards carved into the existing 84,000 square foot plate, the building offers the beauty of a landscaped captured forest and ample natural daylight, proving to be a best-in-class working environment.
Hampshire unveiled its newly renovated company headquarters located at 22 Maple Avenue in Morristown, N.J., this past summer. Undertaking an approximately year-long renovation, Hampshire transformed the existing space, preserving the original building’s charm and character while creating a sustainable, modern workspace conducive to today’s business environment. Designed to foster collaboration and growth, the shared office space features an open, inviting floor plan, features a Town Hall meeting space, two main conference rooms and four meeting rooms. In line with Hampshire’s green initiatives, the building will be LEED Silver Certified and is designed to be sensitive to the neighborhood and its surrounding natural environment.
About The Hampshire Companies
The Hampshire Companies is a full-service, private real estate firm based in Morristown, New Jersey. The Hampshire Companies is a vibrant, dynamic organization that combines creative vision and superior execution, thereby enabling it to create and enhance value in real estate investments. Additional information on The Hampshire Companies is available online at HampshireRE.com.
About the U.S. Green Building Council- New Jersey Chapter
USGBC NJ is a non -profit organization focused solely on advancing green building and sustainable communities. The mission of USGBC NJ is to transform NJ’s built environment to become ecologically sustainable, profitable, and healthy. We accomplish our mission through education, advocacy, and collaboration. As New Jersey’s green building advocate and education resource, USGBC NJ provides over 150 educational programs, events, green building tours, research studies, and advocacy initiatives each year, through its three- branch, state-wide network.
There are over 3,000 LEED® accredited professionals in NJ and over 900 LEED® registered and 300 certified projects in New Jersey, plus over 2000 certified LEED Homes. For over 10 years USGBC NJ has served as the meeting ground, catalyst, and propeller for sustainability -minded individuals in building-related professions. Through the NJ Chapter, LEED and green building in general, have found fertile ground in New Jersey. The New Jersey Chapter’s 1,500+ individual members represent the entire spectrum of New Jersey’s green building community. Currently, USGBC NJ is providing grant-funded green building and resiliency education to NJ businesses.
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Ashley Manz
R&J Public Relations
908-722-5757
amanz@randjpr.com