Top 10 LEED-Certified Buildings in San Francisco in 2020

After reviewing top LEED-certified buildings in California this year through November, we continued the list of 2020 LEED-certified office buildings by analyzing San Francisco and its green projects. Roughly 52 properties achieved LEED Platinum and Gold level certification in that interval, according to U.S. Green Building Council data. We sorted the Top 10 office projects that received the highest points on the scorecard—the list comprises seven Platinum certifications and three Gold level certifications. 

Rank	Project Name	Street	City	LEED System Version	Points Achieved	Certification Level	Certification Date
1	Paragon Point – 2020	3 Lagoon Drive	Redwood City	v2009	86	Platinum	10/30/2020
2	Workday Headquarters	6110 Stoneridge Mall Road	Pleasanton	v2009	85	Platinum	4/25/2020
3	150 Spear	150 Spear St.	San Francisco	v2009	82	Platinum	11/10/2020
4	650 California Street	650 California St.	San Francisco	v2009	82	Platinum	6/27/2020
5	LMS Architects Office TI	1940 Bryant St.	San Francisco	v4	82	Platinum	11/18/2020
6	Adobe 100-110 Hooper	100-110 Hooper St.	San Francisco	v4	81	Platinum	6/16/2020
7	345 Brannan	345 Brannan St.	San Francisco	v4.1	80	Platinum	7/7/2020
8	600 Battery	600 Battery St.	San Francisco	v4.1	74	Gold	3/24/2020
9	601 City Center	601 12th St.	Oakland	v4	71	Gold	1/27/2020
10	Ferry Building	1 Ferry Building	San Francisco	v4.1	70	Gold	6/1/2020

1. Paragon Point

Located at 3 Lagoon Drive, Paragon Point achieved LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations and Maintenance Platinum certification with a scorecard of 86 points in October. Built in 1985, the two-building office complex received its first LEED certification in 2009 at the Gold level, and then, following significant upgrades in 2015, the property reached the Platinum level with 81 points on the scorecard.

Owned by MetLife Real Estate Investment, the property totals 242,498 square feet and includes 2,600 square feet of retail space. Green features include indoor air quality, solid waste management, green cleaning, water-performance measurement, indoor plumbing fixture and fitting efficiency and water-efficient landscaping. Additionally, Paragon Point’s building automation system utilizes a “load shed” strategy to optimize energy efficiency performance. The project also procured a renewable energy certificate (RECs) to offset more than 530 MTCO2e and source nearly 5,380 MWh of renewable energy.

2. Workday Headquarters

Developed in 2019, the 410,000-square-foot building achieved LEED 2009 New Construction Platinum certification in April 2020 with a scorecard of 85 points. Owned by Next Play Consulting, the six-story property uses a cool roof—a large 865-kilowatt solar array that provides up to one-third of the building’s daily electricity needs and mitigates the urban heat island effect.

Located at 6110 Stoneridge Mall Road, the building consists of an innovative on-site greywater recycling system that is set to save up to 720,000 gallons of water annually. Interior design features include indoor trees planted in the building’s open spaces, outdoor space and an open-air amphitheater for up to 1,500 people. The project marked all points for public transportation access—the property is next to the West Dublin-Pleasanton BART station and parking garage and includes bicycle storage and changing rooms.

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3. 150 Spear

The 270,000-square-foot 150 Spear St. includes 2,500 square feet of retail space. Constructed in 1983, the midrise property underwent cosmetic renovations in 2002. Walnut Hill Group acquired the asset in 2017 for $182.6 million from Principal Real Estate Investors.

In November of this year, the 18-story building received LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations and Maintenance Platinum certification with an 82-point scorecard. Sustainable features include water performance measurement and indoor plumbing fixture and fitting efficiency, optimized energy efficiency performance, on-site and off-site renewable energy, solid waste management and green cleaning practices, and indoor air quality management practices. Castlight Health, Brighterion, Gartner and Commonwealth Foreign Exchange are among the tenants.

4. 650 California Street

The Columbia Property Trust-owned, 33-story tower first received LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations and Maintenance Gold certification with a scorecard of 63 points. The company paid $309 million for the asset in 2014, when it acquired it from Tishman Speyer. In June of this year, the 478,392-square-foot building was awarded Platinum level certification with an 82-point scorecard. 

Known as the Hartford Building, the Owings & Merrill-designed property was built in 1963. Upgrades in 2013 and 2017 comprised on-site valet parking, secure bike parking, electric vehicle and Scoot E-Bike charging stations and Zipcar access. Additional renovations included indoor plumbing fixture and fitting efficiency, water performance measurement, optimized energy efficiency performance, on-site and off-site renewable energy, waste management and green cleaning and indoor air quality management. Notable tenants at 650 California Street include Credit Suisse, WeWork, Affirm, Thornton Tomasetti and Textainer.

5. LMS Architects Office TI

Located at 1940 Bryant St., the office property received LEED v4 ID+C: Commercial Interiors Platinum certification with a scorecard of 82 points in November. Developed in 1923, the four-story building totals 29,000 square feet of office space.

According to USGBC’s scorecard, the development received 18 out of 18 points for location and transportation, eight out of 12 for water efficiency, 33 out of 38 for energy and atmosphere, seven out of 13 for material and resources, six out of 17 for indoor environmental quality, four out of four for regional priority credits and six out of six for innovation. LMSA’s work in ecological design has been recognized by the AIA, USGBC, the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Building Museum and the international Green Building Challenge. Five LMSA projects have been named AIA COTE Top 10 Green Projects in the U.S.

6. Adobe 100-110 Hooper

Located at 100 Hooper St., the four-story, $270 million project developed by Kilroy Realty Corp. totals 400,000 square feet. Two identical, adjacent buildings are connected by skybridges on the second, third and fourth floors and a courtyard below. Three floors in both buildings are dedicated to Adobe. The company’s rooftop patio features raised planters, which grow a variety of fruits and vegetables that are used in the employee café. The fourth floor includes electronic boards displaying the ingredients and nutritional value of menu items.

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Built in 2018, the complex received LEED Platinum certification in June 2020 with a scorecard of 81 points. The facility features a program that addresses energy efficiency, recycling, waste management, water conservation and other sustainable and green cleaning practices and has established a three-stream waste service, which includes trash, recycling and compost.

7. 345 Brannan

Formerly a parking lot, the five-story office building achieved LEED Platinum certification with an 80-point scorecard. The building includes a green roof and roof deck, while the landscaped area serves to reduce stormwater pressure on the city sewer system. Much of the rainwater is stored in an on-site cistern, used as greywater to flush toilets. On the energy performance side, the property has scored 30 points of 33, while for waste management, it racked up six of the eight possible points. Of the 20 points assigned to indoor environmental quality performance, the project tallied 17.

In December 2019, Kilroy Realty Corp. acquired 345 Brannan and set a record for the highest price paid per square foot for a large San Francisco office building. The company shelled out $146 million, or $1,327 per square foot, for the 102,300-square-foot property, according to CommercialEdge. The seller was Dutch investor Breevast BV.

8. 600 Battery

TMG Partners’ three-story office building at 600 Battery St. consists of 124,547 square feet. The property came online in phases, in 1927 and 1938, and underwent a full renovation between 1998 and 2000. In January last year, the company acquired the asset for $115 million, or $923,35 per square foot.

This year, in March, 400 Battery received a LEED v4.1 O+M: Existing Buildings Gold level certification with a 74-point scorecard. The improvement program included concrete construction, high exposed ceilings, natural light, polished concrete floors, large efficient floor plates and a roof deck with panoramic views of downtown and the bay. The property benefits from a mix of outdoor spaces such as the adjacent Sydney Walton Park, restaurants including Kokkari and Roka Akor, and social institutions such as The Battery.

9. 601 City Center

The 601 City Center property achieved LEED v4 BD+C: Core and Shell Gold certification with a 71-point scorecard. Located at 601 12th St., Shorenstein’s asset includes green cleaning practices, integrated pest management, waste and e-waste recycling and energy and waste efficiency standards.

The 24-story building features 9,500 square feet of ground-floor retail space, bike lockers, a roof deck, two stories of underground parking, more than eight EV parking stations and on-site showers. The 606,267-square-foot tower ranks as the largest Class A green building in the East Bay.

10. Ferry Building

The property serves as a terminal for ferries that travel across the San Francisco Bay and includes a food hall and an office building totaling 274,332 square feet. Located at 1 Ferry Building, the redeveloped property features two floors of Class A office space arranged around a central plaza. In June, the asset achieved LEED v4.1 O+M: Existing Buildings Gold level certification with a scorecard of 70 points.

According to CommercialEdge, Hudson Pacific Properties acquired the property in 2018 for $291 million from EQ Office. Designed in 1892 by architect A. Page Brown in the Beaux-Arts style, the ferry building was completed in 1898. At its opening, it was the largest project undertaken in the city at that time.