Top 10 LEED-Certified Buildings in Washington, D.C.

In 2019, more than 2,200 projects achieved LEED certification in the U.S., representing more than 501 million gross square feet of space. Colorado came in at No. 1, with more than 4.7 gross square feet of LEED space per person, followed by Illinois, New York, Massachusetts and Hawaii, which rounded out the top five, according to U.S. Green Building Council. “A really great story of LEED green building leadership though is Washington, D.C. They far surpass any other state when it comes to the amount of LEED-certified square feet per person and in 2019 logged 52.86,” said USGBC’s Senior Vice President Melissa Baker in an interview with Commercial Property Executive.

We rounded up the top 10 LEED-certified office buildings in Washington, D.C., based on their scorecards. All of the office properties listed below are LEED Platinum-certified projects.

Project Name	Street	Points Achieved	Cert Level	Cert Date
200 Massachusetts Ave. NW	200 Massachusetts Ave. NW	85	Platinum	9/4/2019
Portrait Building Recertification	701 Eighth St.	85	Platinum	9/4/2019
799 Ninth St.	799 Ninth St. NW	84	Platinum	5/30/2019
1101 Sixteenth	1101 16th St. NW	84	Platinum	10/5/2019
455 Massachusetts Ave. Recertification	455 Massachusetts Ave. NW	83	Platinum	5/7/2019
ASLA Center for Landscape Architecture	636 Eye St. NW	83	Platinum	4/10/2019
700 Sixth St.	700 Sixth St. NW	83	Platinum	5/29/2019
1400 K St.	1400 K St. NW	83	Platinum	5/22/2019
750 First St. Recertification	750 First St. NE	82	Platinum	3/14/2019
World Wildlife Fund Building Recertification	1250 24th St. NW	82	Platinum	7/8/2019

1. 200 Massachusetts Ave. NW

Property Group Partners’ 12-story office building at 200 Massachusetts Ave. NW received LEED 2009 Core & Shell certification in September 2019. Scoring 85 points, the property includes a water cistern to secure stormwater runoff and harvest groundwater for reuse, expected to reduce water for landscaping usage by 50 percent and water for potable usage by up to 30 percent. Additionally, the building features rooftop green areas designed to minimize heat collection and decrease the property’s cooling needs throughout the warmest months of the year, as well as EcoChimneys, through which car exhaust is cleaned from the parking garage.

Designed by architectural firm Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates, 200 Massachusetts is the first building at Capitol Crossing to earn LEED Platinum certification. PGP’s Capitol Crossing project is set to include a total of five buildings and 2.2 million square feet of mixed-use space upon completion in 2022, and is expected to go beyond LEED Platinum.

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2. Portrait Building Recertification 

The eight-story Portrait Building also achieved LEED Platinum for Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance certification in September 2019. The office building scored 85 points and has held an Energy Star rating, with a score averaging 90, since 2013. The Portrait Building was also designated a BOMA 360 performance building in October 2015.

Clarion Partners acquired the asset in 2013 for $98.5 million from Wereldhave. The property received its first LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance Gold certification with 60 points in 2014. The LEED scorecard shows that the office asset received a total of 23 out of 26 points for sustainable sites, 13 out of 14 points for water efficiency, 27 out of 35 for energy and atmosphere, five out of 10 for material and resources, nine out of 15 for indoor environmental quality, five out of six for innovation and three out of four points for regional priority credits. 

3. 799 Ninth St. 

Brookfield Properties acquired the 799 Ninth St. building in 2012 for $106 million. Two years and several renovations later, the property received LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance Gold certification with a scorecard of 61 points. Last May, under the same certification type, the office building scored 84 points and received Platinum certification. In 2018, it earned the Energy Star label. 

The 10-story Class A building is located in the East End submarket, adjacent to the City Center project and one block away from three Metro lines. Built in 2001, the asset went green in 2009 by implementing 14 green building activities and features including water-use reduction, sustainable site selection and development, responsible materials selection and waste management, enhanced indoor environmental quality, energy-efficient operations, historic preservation and energy-efficient design. 

4. 1101 16th St. NW 

Designed by HOK Architects and developed by Akridge and Stars Investments, the seven-story office property was completed in 1970 and 1974 and renovated in 2019 when it received LEED Gold Core & Shell Platinum certification with an 84-point scorecard. The 2019 renovation included the repositioning of the two buildings into one Class A office property.

The redevelopment process featured limestone as the primary exterior material, with glass curtain wall systems with evergreen vines, which are sustained by a hydroponic system that continuously circulates tempered and nutrient-rich water. Spanning the full 16-foot floor-to-ceiling height of the main lobby, the three-dimensional sculptural wall was fabricated with Computer Numerical Control technology optimized for efficient material use and installation.

5. 455 Massachusetts Ave. 

The 455 Massachusetts Ave. project upgraded its scorecard from 81 points in 2013, when it first received LEED for Existing Building Operations & Maintenance Platinum certification, to 83 points in 2019. This property has 21 green activities including energy-efficient operations, water-use reduction, sustainable site selection and development, responsible-materials selection and waste management, enhanced indoor environmental quality and energy performance disclosure.

ASB Capital Management implemented several energy conservation measures at the 12-story building, designed to reduce energy consumption and improve occupant comfort—protected off-site open habitat to preserve open land, instituted a landscaping program designed to minimize irrigation water use and utilize environmentally friendly landscaping practices, retrofitted water-efficient fixtures throughout the building and executed a robust recycling program designed to ensure waste is diverted from landfills. The asset was Energy Star-certified in January 2019.

6. ASLA Center for Landscape Architecture 

Located at 636 Eye St. NW, American Society of Landscape Architects’ headquarters totaling 12,600 square feet, was built in 1995 and completely renovated in 2016 with a focus on maximizing energy efficiency, occupant health and comfort and sustainable design. Architecture firm Gensler and landscape architecture firm Oehme, van Sweden & Associates partnered to build a new center that offers a green roof designed by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates. Water flowing off the roof is captured in a ground-floor, 700-gallon cistern and used to irrigate the outdoor patio space filled with native plants and green walls.

Additionally, ASLA’s office asset includes a rooftop skylight, which distributes natural light and reduces the use of artificial lighting. The property received LEED 2009 Commercial Interiors Platinum certification in April 2019 with 83 points on the scorecard and has been Energy Star certified for many years.

7. 700 Sixth St.

The 300,000-square-foot office asset was acquired by USAA Real Estate in 2011 for $168.2 million. Located at 700 Sixth St. NW, the 12-story building includes glass windows on all sides for natural light. The property was awarded LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance Platinum certification in May 2019. 

With a scorecard of 83 points, the property includes a green roof that captures stormwater and deflects heat, an energy-efficient variable air volume system, carbon dioxide monitors, advanced systems for ventilation and water-conserving fixtures. Back in 2014, the property achieved LEED for Existing Buildings 2009 Platinum certification, earning 81 out of 110 points.

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8. 1400 K St. 

Completed in 1982, Brookfield Properties’ 12-story office asset was awarded LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance Platinum certification in the same month that the company received the certification for its 799 Ninth St. project. With 83 points on the scorecard, the multitenant, 194,000-square-foot property includes 9,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.

The LEED scorecard shows that the property received a total of 24 out of 26 points for sustainable sites, eight out of 14 points for water efficiency, 29 out of 35 for energy and atmosphere, three out of 10 for material and resources, 10 out of 15 for indoor environmental quality, six out of six for innovation, and three out of four points for regional priority credits. 

9. 750 First St.

Owned by the American Psychological Association, the 351,000-square-foot office building was first awarded LEED 2009 Existing Buildings Operations & Maintenance Gold certification, with a scorecard of 63 points, in December 2013. Six years later, in March 2019, the 11-story property received Platinum recertification with an 82-point scorecard.

The LEED scorecard provided shows that the office asset received a total of 21 out of 26 points for sustainable sites, eight out of 14 points for water efficiency, 29 out of 35 for energy and atmosphere, six out of 10 for material and resources, nine out of 15 for indoor environmental quality, six out of six for innovation and three out of four points for regional priority credits. 

10. World Wildlife Fund Building

The World Wildlife Fund headquarters features more than 250,000 square feet of office space at 1250 24th St. NW. The quadruple LEED Platinum-certified building had an 82-point scorecard as of July 2019. The eight-story property features a sky-lit atrium and the third-largest green roof in Washington, D.C., extending over more than 27,000 square feet with 53,568 plants that cover 83 percent of the roof. WWF’s workplace was awarded an Energy Star rating of 86 out of 100 for efficiency upgrades to the base building mechanical systems.

The property includes sustainable features such as two solar panels that use 10 to 15 percent less energy; water-saving faucets that reduce water usage by 20 percent; MERV13 HVAC air filters that feature a low-pressure drop that translates to more efficient use of energy; motion-sensor lighting that reduces the building’s total energy usage by 10 percent and bicycle racks and EC charging stations. WWF has owned the property since 2000 when it acquired it for $63 million.