Announcing LABBC’s initial cohort of Low Carbon Leaders

The work to achieve net zero carbon emissions in the built environment has begun, and Los Angeles is the epicenter. Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Energy announced 55 initial participants in a national pilot project launched to demonstrate pathways to achieve low or zero net carbon in buildings and manufacturing plants. Nearly 20% of those participants are based in Los Angeles, and three of them have further committed to work with the L.A. Better Buildings Challenge (LABBC) to set the bar for the commercial real estate industry as Low Carbon Leaders. Those leaders include:

• CommonWealth Partners

• Douglas Emmett

• The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)

These highly motivated market makers have made public commitments to be carbon neutral by 2050, at minimum, while agreeing to provide transparency around their processes and results along the way. Each has chosen at least two L.A. buildings at which to implement a workplan they will develop over the course of a two-year timeframe as part of the Low Carbon Leaders program.

In initial planning sessions with the LABBC, these leaders shared some of the opportunities and challenges their organizations have identified for the properties they have chosen.

CommonWealth Partners: City National Plaza

Pilot Properties: City National Plaza, a 52-story twin-tower complex in the heart of the Financial District in Downtown Los Angeles, comprises some 3.6 million gross square feet with two levels of subterranean parking and two additional levels of subterranean retail.

Key Opportunity: The expansive property, which already boasts LEED-EB Platinum Certification, benefits from a footprint that covers an entire city block, providing ample underground mechanical space.

Potential Barrier: Completing work in tenant spaces may pose a challenge where modifying high-end, occupied spaces is impractical or cost prohibitive, as well as where tenants may require long operating hours for their business.

CommonWealth Partners was named LABBC’s Energy Performance Award winner in 2021. Check out the case study outlining the work they did that won them the award.

Douglas Emmett: Warner Center Towers & Sherman Oaks Galleria 

Pilot Properties: Warner Center Towers, a five-building office campus in Woodland Hills, consists of approximately 2 million square feet; and Sherman Oaks Galleria, a one-million-square-foot open air business and lifestyle center, features one office tower and three low-rise office buildings overlooking a retail and entertainment complex.  

Key Opportunity: Deep energy efficiency retrofits, including envelope, lighting and HVAC measures, will be the fundamental way forward at both properties. 

Potential Barrier: Financial implications of the sustainability work, particularly justifying funding for retrofits that may provide a longer payback, may pose one of the team’s greatest challenges. 

The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)

Pilot Properties: MOCA Grand Avenue, a 107,000-square-foot museum flagship campus, is located on Bunker Hill; and The Geffen Contemporary at MOCA, a former police car warehouse, was converted into a 43,500-square-foot museum space. 

Key Opportunity: As the sole occupant of both buildings, the museum has full operational control, which will provide important flexibility as it proceeds with retrofits. 

Potential Barrier: Unique planning considerations will need to be weighed, both from a financial standpoint for the nonprofit and to ensure artwork is properly preserved as environmental conditions are modified. 

MOCA was named the LABBC’s Energy Efficiency Project of the Year in 2018. Check out the case study outlining the work they did that won them the award. 

Learn more details about the opportunities and challenges that both Douglas Emmett and MOCA anticipate addressing in a roundtable discussion we hosted with them during a recent webinar.

Admission to LABBC’s Low Carbon Leaders program is occurring on a rolling basis this summer, with participation limited to some of our most motivated partners. We thank our inaugural cohort of Low Carbon Leaders for stepping up to walk the talk and demonstrate important—and undoubtedly winding—pathways to net zero.