SCOTTSDALE, Arizona (April 19, 2021) — SkySong, The ASU Scottsdale Innovation Center’s fifth office building has earned the prestigious LEED Gold certification for its sustainability and environmentally friendly construction.
The six-story, 151,000-square-foot office and research building in the heart of the project is the first building in the project to receive LEED Gold certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The other four office buildings are LEED Silver certified, and all have been developed with a commitment to healthy, environmentally friendly design — part of SkySong’s “Culture of Health and Innovation.”
LEED — Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design — is a certification program that sets the standard for environmentally responsible construction in the U.S. Buildings are measured based on the number of points they earn across the categories of green building, such as energy, water, indoor environment, location and materials.
SkySong has earned environmental recognition for the first four completed office buildings on the site, joining only a handful of projects in the Valley to have achieved Silver Certification of higher, and one of the few non-governmental projects to achieve such status.
“This certification means that the newest building at SkySong is also one of the greenest buildings in the entire Phoenix metro area,” said Sharon Harper, Chairman & CEO of Plaza Companies, the master developer of the SkySong project and SkySong 5. “We are very proud of SkySong 5 and are pleased with the success we have had in attracting new companies to the building thanks to its many exceptional features.”
Plaza Companies is the master developer of SkySong, in partnership with ASU University Realty, City of Scottsdale and Holualoa Companies.
Todd Hardy, managing director, ASU Knowledge Enterprise, said the certification is another example of the overall SkySong vision of innovation and technology.
“The LEED Gold certification shows how committed project teams are to creating a thriving work environment for the companies at SkySong,” Hardy said. “We appreciate the hard work of the design and construction teams in making this important recognition happen.”
The path to the LEED award began with the design process. SkySong 5 features sustainable strategies that were implemented, including:
- Use of native plant species and high-efficiency irrigation technology
- High efficiency design and systems technology to achieve energy cost savings
- Building materials that were specified and manufactured using recycled materials.
- Use of low-emitting materials like adhesives, sealants, paints, flooring, and composite wood to provide healthy indoor air quality
- Implementation of a Green Housekeeping Policy provided by the Plaza janitorial service contractor to optimize health indoor air quality for tenants and occupants during the building’s operational period
- Dedicated areas for collection and storage of recyclables within the building and onsite, including a tenant recycling waste disposal program provided by the janitorial service of the building
- Diversion of on-site construction waste from the landfill
- Use of low-flow plumbing fixtures to achieve water use reduction
- Preferred parking reserved for sustainable vehicle transportation, like low-emissions vehicles, and even carpooling
- Sourcing of sustainably harvested and managed wood products, verified by the Forest Stewardship Certification program
SkySong is a 42-acre mixed use development designed to:
- Create an ecology of collaboration and innovation among high-profile technology enterprises and related researchers;
- Advance global business objectives of on-site enterprises;
- Raise Arizona’s profile as a global center of innovation through co-location of ASU’s strategic global partners; and
- Create a unique regional economic and social asset.
Companies located at SkySong have the opportunity to partner with Arizona State University, which has more than 100,000 students studying across four metropolitan Phoenix campuses, in Lake Havasu City, Los Angeles and Washington D.C. ASU is one of the largest public universities in the nation, with the majority of its students attending its campus in Tempe, Arizona, less than three miles from SkySong.
In addition to locating its own innovative research units at the center, through ASU’s on-site operations, tenant companies have a single point of contact for introductions to researchers, faculty and programs to address their specific needs.
For more information on SkySong, visit SkySong.com or follow developments on Facebook.
About SkySong
Plaza Companies is the developer of the project in partnership with Arizona State University Foundation, the City of Scottsdale and Holualoa Companies. Lee and Associates provides the brokerage services and Plaza del Rio Management Corporation provides the property management and construction services. Architects at SkySong include Pei Cobb Fried and Partners, DMJM Design, Butler Design Group and Kendle Design Collaborative.
About Plaza Companies
With offices in Peoria, Scottsdale and Tucson, Plaza Companies is a full-service real estate firm specializing in the management, leasing and development of medical office and commercial office properties, technology and bioscience facilities, mixed-use properties and senior housing communities. Since 1982, Plaza Companies has established a proud track record as a competitive, connected and conscientious real estate firm with partnerships throughout the industries it serves. For more information, visit www.theplazaco.com.
About University Realty
University Realty is a subsidiary of ASU Enterprise Partners, an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to generating resources for the benefit of Arizona State University.
About Holualoa Companies
Holualoa Companies is a real estate investment firm focused on the successful acquisition, repositioning, redevelopment and disposition of real estate assets. Headquartered in Tucson, Arizona, with offices in Phoenix, Santa Monica, Hawaii and Paris, its investments span the United States and Europe and include office, retail, industrial, multi-family, hotel and mixed-use investment properties. Holualoa is an experienced investor for its own account and on behalf of a select group of private investors.
About the City of Scottsdale
Scottsdale is one of the state’s leading job centers, with a diverse economy built on medical research, high-tech innovation, tourism and corporate headquarters. Scottsdale is home to nearly 18,000 businesses supplying over 150,000 jobs. The high-tech innovation center SkySong, located just a few miles from Downtown, is designed to help companies grow through a unique partnership with nearby Arizona State University. The Scottsdale Cure Corridor is a partnership of premier health care providers and biomedical companies seeking to advance medicine and patient care through cutting-edge research. For more information, visit ChooseScottsdale.com.