VANCOUVER

Oxford Properties Group (‘Oxford’), a leading global real estate investor, asset manager and business builder, announced that The Stack, a 37-storey, AAA-class 550,000 sq. ft. commercial office tower in downtown Vancouver, has achieved the Canada Green Building Council’s (‘CaGBC’) Zero Carbon Building - Design standard certification. As Canada's first commercial high-rise office tower to achieve this certification, The Stack sets new a new standard for environmental performance across workplaces in Canada.

As well as being the first high-rise commercial office tower to achieve the certification, it is also the largest project in Canada to achieve it to date.  Upon completion later this year, The Stack will become the tallest office building in Vancouver which added to the technical complexities to achieve the Zero Carbon Standard. The Stack has incorporated many innovative features that minimize carbon emissions, energy and water usage as well as landfill waste. These include low carbon building systems, triple-pane glazing on all windows, rainwater management and enhanced air tightness. On-site renewable energy will be achieved through the use of a rooftop photovoltaic solar panel array.

“Oxford’s purpose is to create economic and social value through real estate and The Stack embodies Oxford’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and decarbonization,” commented Andrew O’Neil, Vice President of Development, Oxford Properties. “The CaGBC certification is the culmination of over five years of planning to pioneer a new zero carbon framework in a high-rise and architecturally-significant office tower, all while juggling the demands of realizing an economically-viable commercial project for our stakeholders.

“By being the first commercial high-rise office project in Canada to achieve this certification, we have garnered significant learnings that we can apply to future projects, and share with our peers, to lead the real estate industry to new levels of sustainability.”

Also targeting LEED v4 Platinum Core and Shell certification, The Stack will deploy smart building technology to provide insights on energy management, optimize building performance and enable preventative maintenance. Designed to encourage active transportation options and promote wellness, The Stack will feature 250 bike parking stalls and club-quality fitness and change facilities for an exceptional customer experience.

In 2015, Oxford set out to reduce its carbon footprint by 30 percent by 2025. Last year Oxford announced it had exceeded their goal, reducing its portfolio carbon intensity by 37 percent, four years ahead of schedule. The company has achieved this by pioneering groundbreaking new developments that raise the bar on sustainability, investing in data and analytics to set hourly carbon targets for its properties, and human solutions that encourage sustainable active transportation by a building’s customers.

The Stack is set to become the latest in a line of landmark developments delivered by Oxford. The company is responsible for several landmark and award-winning development projects such as Vancouver’s MNP Tower, 402 Dunsmuir and Riverbend Business Park, Manhattan’s St. John’s Terminal which was recently acquired by Google, The Leadenhall Building in London and Toronto’s Park Hyatt. The Stack continues to achieve strong interest from a wide range of occupiers and is currently 70% pre-leased.

“Oxford has strong conviction that best-in-class offices that are smart, wellness-focused and sustainable will continue to be highly desirable to occupiers and continue to outperform,” commented Ted Mildon, Senior Director at Oxford Properties. “There is a real need among businesses to ensure they are located in buildings that not only inspire and engage their workforce, but also actively contribute to their own ESG goals. As a result of our Zero Carbon certification, The Stack is uniquely positioned to do so in the Vancouver market.”

The CaGBC’s Zero Carbon Building - Design standard represents a unique, made-in-Canada framework that guides the design and construction of low-carbon, highly efficient buildings. This, in turn, helps the development industry achieve climate change commitments and assist new and existing buildings to reach zero carbon.

“Oxford continues to demonstrate leadership in lowering carbon emissions across their portfolio. The Stack is the first new high-rise office building to achieve CAGBC’s Zero Carbon Building - Design certification. With this stand out project, Oxford is setting a new benchmark for Canada’s top real estate owners,” comments Thomas Mueller, President and CEO, Canada Green Building Council. “Shifting investor and market interests in carbon solutions, along with advances in technology and know-how, make it more feasible for Canada’s major real estate projects to follow suit. The time is now to target zero carbon in all new building construction and in existing building retrofits. By pursuing LEED v4 in addition to ZCB-Design, Oxford is ensuring The Stack will offer the best in sustainable design: zero carbon emissions, reducing environmental impacts and improving occupiers’ wellbeing.”

For more information about Oxford’s environmental, social and governance practices, visit www.sustainable.oxfordproperties.com. To learn more about The Stack, visit www.thestackyvr.com.