An Invitation to CREW Miami's Networking Event of the Year

Do not miss CREW Miami and The Women's Fund of Miami Dade County's Cocktails, Communities & Connections event. This will be CREW Miami's 8th annual Fall Fundraiser. Proceeds will benefit both CREW Miami as well as the Women's Fund of Miami Dade County. Tickets are $50.00 and sponsorships for this high profile event can be purchased on-line. Click on the link below.

http://tinyurl.com/365fj3z

Should LEED Certified Buildings Command a higher lease rate?

Just 2 years ago, the South Florida Branch of the USGBC would meet monthly and discuss the virtues of LEED certified buildings without one LEED building yet completed in Miami Dade County. I believe the very first LEED certified building was a single tenant retail store on Biscayne Blvd.
Now we have several LEED certified buildings in our office inventory. The most prominent being the new office towers, Well Fargo Center, 1450 Brickell, and Miami Green. There are also several LEED certified EBOM, or Existing buildings, where certification is earned when retrofitting and establishing new operational practice. Both forms of certification require a commitment by the building owner to pay a premium for certification. They both require a commitment to bring together a team of designers, builders, engineers, and property management to follow through. Although the cost is going down there is undoubtedly a premium to building to a LEED certification standard. LEED building certification promised a better building with higher operating efficiencies.
A building owner should be rewarded for this commitment. We do not have enough history in the South Florida market to substantiate whether or not LEED certified buildings are bringing their owners the rewards promised by doing the right thing.
South Florida needs data to substantiate the original claims of the USGBC. Other parts of the country where LEED certified buildings are the norm have done a good job of documenting higher lease rates, lower vacancy rates, and therefore higher rates of return for the building owners. Tenants occupy a healthier space that has monitored air quality, more day-lighting, increased control of temperature, usually increased space efficiency (more comfortable people in less space), while making less of an environmental impact. For companies that have Corporate Responsibility Statements, leasing in a LEED certified building is almost a mandate.
The Commercial Real Estate Community needs to take a leadership role in promoting this space to prospective tenants. In the 3 new office towers in Dade County, the LEED certification is just a by-line. It is the job of the Tenant Representatives and Landlord Representatives to promote the LEED certification as a real and tangible benefit to the tenants.

LOUISE BENDIX,LEED-AP | Office Leasing Specialist
ComReal Miami, Inc.|Commercial Real Estate Services
366 Altara Ave., Suite 102 | Coral Gables, FL 33146
T 786-433-2376 | F 888-316-6818
lbendix@comreal.com | www.LouiseBendix.com

Vote NO to Amendment 4 on November 2

The supporters of Amendment 4 would say that it gives the voters more say in how municipalities, in which they pay taxes, are developed. At first glance it seems like a reasonable propositon to allow the public more voice in how their cities and towns are built. Passing of this amendment could actually have disastrous consequences that could halt worthy projects throughtout the state.

We consistently have a very poor turn-out to vote in our country. The voters that consistently show up are those people that are voting against something. The content, working population, despite efforts to change that, do not make voting a priority. It makes sense to see that with all the additional elections this amendment will require, only those opposed to projects will vote. "Passage of Amendment 4 could lead to hundreds, if not thousands, of extra elections that would cost $44.6 million to $83.4 million statewide, Florida TaxWatch said in a briefing released Tuesday."

"Our nation’s founding fathers and Florida TaxWatch have long warned against 'hyper-democracy' and its threat to our republic form of government. The current process to amend comp plans is already accessible and open to the public. The voters currently hold elected officials responsible for their actions in amending comp plans."

Florida TaxWatch expressed concerns about jobs s well."Amendment 4 would stymie business formation and expansion as higher costs would emerge for approved commercial and residential investment. Future development in the state will be further deterred, as potential and existing industry would face uncertainty and longer waiting periods as a result of the required elections under Amendment 4," the group said.

“With Amendment 4, you are putting a roadblock in place,” Debbie Orshefsky, co-chair of the national environmental and land development practice at law firm Greenberg Traurig, said during the Business Journal's Aug. 6 Critical Conversation about Amendment 4. “The public is very parochial. The public is going to think of ‘what is good in my backyard?’”

Read More: http://tiny.cc/herb9

LOUISE BENDIX,LEED-AP | Office Leasing Specialist
ComReal Miami, Inc.|Commercial Real Estate Services
366 Altara Ave., Suite 102 | Coral Gables, FL 33146
T 786-433-2376 | F 888-316-6818
www.LouiseBendix.com