Sun. June 17, 2012
WASHINGTON, DC – The DowntownDC Business Improvement District (BID) was one of four DowntownDC BID area businesses to receive a Mayor’s Sustainability Award last Thursday for outstanding achievements in sustainability that support the city’s Sustainable DC initiative.
The DowntownDC BID’s role as a facilitator and catalyst for collaborative sustainability programs and services has grown substantially after the organization leveraged strong relationships with several community stakeholders to create the DowntownDC ecoDistrict in April 2011. The ecoDistrict is an area with a broad commitment to accelerate neighborhood-scale sustainability through operational practices and is focused on a broad array of issues—energy, water, waste management, tree care, transportation and green jobs.
“We appreciate this recognition,” said Richard H. Bradley, executive director of the DowntownDC BID. “The ecoDistrict gives the DowntownDC BID a framework within which we can pursue our goals of economic vitality and environmental sustainability working with building and business owners in our area.”
The BID’s commitment to sustainability implementation efforts span the local and national level and include both public and private partnerships. Among the outstanding achievements undertaken by the BID to support the mayor’s goal to make Washington, DC, America’s most sustainable city:
- Led by example by creating an Infrastructure and Sustainability department which integrates sustainability into the organization’s transportation initiatives, capital projects and environmental programs
- Embraced 100% wind power at its SAM Program headquarters building, located at 1229 New York Avenue
- Joined the city as a participant in the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) inaugural Green Power Purchasing Challenge and urged Downtown businesses and organizations to join, thus contributing to DC’s standing as the nation’s No. 1 green power purchaser in 2011
- Participated in developing the mayor’s Sustainable DC plan by serving on the Green Ribbon Committee, co-chairing the Transportation Working Group and providing input in all working group areas.
- Joined the White House’s Better Building Challenge, pledging to help reduce energy consumption in the ecoDistrict by 20% by 2020
At last night’s awards ceremony, Mayor Gray said that the “winners are dedicated to improving our city’s environment, communities and economy. Our ongoing effort to plan for a Sustainable DC will build on the innovation, determination, and leadership we see among these dedicated members of our community. I thank them for their contributions and look forward to working with them to spread sustainable best practices to businesses, institutions and neighborhoods across this great city.”
In total, 10 winners were recognized by the city at an awards ceremony held at the House of Sweden and attended by Mayor Vincent Gray, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Swedish Ambassador Jona Hafstrom, EPA Region III Administrator Shawn M. Garvin, and NBC4 News Anchor Wendy Rieger.
Besides the BID, three winners have ties to the DowntownDC BID area. They are FRESHFARM Markets, with farmers’ markets in Penn Quarter and near the White House; Monaco Washington DC, a luxury Kimpton Hotel; and Cassidy Turley, which handled the day-to-day project management required for Terrell Place, located at 575 7th Street, to achieve LEED-Existing Buildings: Operations & Maintenance Platinum certification—DC’s first trophy office building to attain this status.
Summaries and case studies of each award winner become part of an online library of best practices in the District. They are posted on the District Department of the Environment’s (DDOE) website at www.ddoe.dc.gov. Information on the mayor’s vision and the ongoing development of the Sustainable DC implementation plan is available at www.sustainable.dc.gov.
For more information about the DowntownDC BID’s sustainability efforts and the DowntownDC ecoDistrict, contact Scott Pomeroy, the BID’s sustainability manager, at 202-661-7580.