27.10.2017
UNIQ Staromestská awarded Gold LEED certificate
New tenants of the premium office building UNIQ Staromestská are enjoying the benefits of a building officially awarded the world-renowned LEED Gold certificate. Cresco Group, as the leading Slovak residential developer, is proud to have been awarded such a demanding environmental certification for one of its flagship projects.
"Green certificate LEED proves that UNIQ Staromestská is an exemplar working environment with a responsible environmental strategy. The project has been successfully assessed in terms of its environmental, economic, functional and technical properties. We are one of the few developers to have delivered a completely new building in the centre of our capital, which is why we were determined to showcase globally recognised eco-friendly technologies," said Ján Krnáč, Managing Director at CRESCO GROUP.
"A building’s energy consumption largely depends on behaviour of its tenants. However, if a building meets LEED certification criteria, it can save up to 16% of all operation costs allocated to energy systems, e.g. heating, cooling, ventilation or lighting, compared to a reference building. UNIQ Staromestská’s roof features extensive greenery which requires very little maintenance. This also prevents a ‘thermal island’ effect while also reducing cooling costs. During the initial design stage, the building’s thermal comfort and use of daylight were tested using modern computer simulations and the façade’s performance was also tested using a thermal vision study," said Marek Kremeň, Auditor at EXERGY Studios and Simulácie budov.
The new building has already welcomed its first tenants, including the law firm Čechová & Partners or Oriflame, that has also moved its headquarters and a part of retail areas to UNIQ Staromestská. "Existing tenants will be joined by new tenants CMS, Crowdberry and CBRE in upcoming months. Our aim is to provide all tenants with energy-efficient high-quality office areas," adds Ján Krnáč. CBRE Property Management Group is the developer’s partner in the area of property management.
Winning aspects that resulted in a GOLD LEED certification for UNIQ Staromestská:
- Well-connected and central location
- Charging stations for electric cars
- Parking lots for bikes with changing rooms and showers
- Low-maintenance green roof
- Technologies designed to save water and electricity
Newly completed, UNIQ Staromestská comprises three underground and seven above-ground floors. An office area of 7,656 m2 responds to the exacting demands of 21st-century office users, with an additional 917 m2 of retail and storage area. The Gold LEED rating is the result of close collaboration between Cresco Group and the building’s designers, Bogle Architects, together with an impressive team of consultants. Replacing a former parking lot, the boutique project enjoys a prominent location on the corner of Veterná and Staromestská streets. "We are very happy to have led the design for this project. It is a stellar example of responsible approach towards design. This also stems from our efforts to think differently and continuously expand our limits," thinks Ian Bogle, founder of Bogle Architects.