Medical Arts Center at Hartford — Plainville, CT
Environmental Sustainability
2019-2021 Goals
Energy
10% reduction over 3 years
Emissions
10% reduction over 3 years
Water
10% reduction over 3 years
Waste
10% increased diversion over 3 years
Goals benchmarked on 1/1/2018 for the Identified MOB Portfolio
Environmental Efforts to Date
In 2020, DOC earned eight new IREM® Certified Sustainable Property (CSP) designations at our properties, reinforcing the Company’s ongoing commitment to expanding its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices. To learn more, click here.
Physicians Realty Trust utilizes innovative software systems to monitor energy, water, and waste usage, leveraging this data to prioritize our capital efforts across the portfolio. Current partnerships include ENGIE, ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager, and Measurabl. As of August 2019, all of our applicable properties have been on-boarded into these systems.
Physicians Realty Trust is committed to capital expenditure projects with a sustainability focus, specifically including LED retrofits, building automation system upgrades, and façade replacements, resulting in both immediate and long-term energy savings. As of Q3 2019, the company invested $3.16 million in these improvements. Physicians Realty Trust has committed to $3.77 million in sustainability-driven projects in 2020.
In 2018, Physicians Realty Trust established an internal sustainability team and mission statement. In 2019, to organize and direct our company sustainability strategy, Physicians Realty Trust developed an Environmental Management System (EMS). The EMS captures specific policies and programs related to energy and water efficiency, waste management, sustainable development, efficient operational building and maintenance practices, green building certifications, and stakeholder engagement so that we may continually improve the tenant/partner stewardship of our portfolio.
In 2019, Physicians Realty Trust completed a portfolio-wide sustainability survey to review lighting, building automation systems, and occupancy/use patterns in an effort to reduce costs through efficiencies.
Green Leasing
DOC includes green lease language in all of our documents as we work to source and sustain the industry’s highest quality tenants, enhance the patient experience, and create operational efficiencies. We view this tool as a way to increase tenant engagement in our sustainability efforts by communicating the shared value of efficient building operations. Where conventional leases tend to make energy efficiency the sole responsibility of the landlord, under a green lease, tenants and property owners coordinate to conserve resources and align the costs of sustainable investments. We work with our tenants to reach building efficiency goals and help them realize the potential savings of reduced energy, water, and waste costs. Creating higher-performing assets will prove valuable to our socially and fiscally responsible tenants and investors. At the same time, green leasing offers educational opportunities for the tenant while promoting DOC’s ultimate goal of becoming a green leasing leader.
Our green lease provisions were incorporated into our standard lease form and meet the best practices outlined by the IREM’s Certified Sustainable Property program. These enhancements include provisions allowing cost recovery of capital expenses intended to save energy, tenant agreements to share utility data on their suites, and landlord agreements to provide the property’s Energy Star score with tenants on an annual basis.
DOC Earns 2023 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Award
“We are honored to receive the ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year award for the second time in three years,” said John T. Thomas, the Company’s President & Chief Executive Officer. “We are committed to being a leader in the health care and commercial real estate industries when it comes to managing our properties in an […]
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DOC Earns IMT Green Lease Leaders Platinum Designation
In 2022, DOC earned the Green Lease Leaders Platinum Designation from the Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Better Buildings Alliance. The platinum designation is the highest recognition offered for green leasing efforts.
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Invest in Better® by Investing in People
During a year of unprecedented challenges, including a global pandemic, DOC reached out to our partners in new ways to showcase the DOC Difference, as we worked together with our partners—one person, one practice, and one health system at a time.
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