Jacques Whitford Leads the Way to Sustainability

Saint John, NB – One of North America’s leading environmental consulting firms to build sustainable building in Saint John.

Jacques Whitford will serve a dual role as future tenants and consultants to the construction of the green business complex, Somerset Square located in the north end.

“The project is on track for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), making it one of the foremost buildings of its kind in Saint John,” says Kevin Hocquard, Regional Manager for NB & PEI Operations.

LEED certification is the highest standard for sustainable construction. The system addresses building performance within six categories: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy & Atmosphere, Materials & Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality, and Innovation & Design Process. The possible levels of certification are LEED Certified, LEED Silver, LEED Gold, and LEED Platinum. The project is currently tracking for LEED Gold.

“For sustainable structures to be successful, we use an integrated building design approach to maximize the use of all resources including energy, water, materials and the construction site itself,” says Hocquard.

The 25,000 square foot complex is being developed by Commercial Properties Limited and will be built on a Brownfield redevelopment. This means that the site had previous industrial or commercial activity that required clean up before construction. Also during the initial phase of construction there was minimal disruption of the earth and surrounding natural environment.

Other sustainable features of the building include restoration and reuse of land, recycled building materials, reduced lighting loads, recycled rain water system, low flow plumbing and access to public transit.

“Expectations and standards for developments in our city have never been higher,” adds Hocquard. “Communities and businesses are increasingly looking for developments that are technically advanced, but also adhere to top environmental and energy efficiency standards.”

“Jacques Whitford has offices throughout the eastern United States, Canada and internationally; however, we plan to be the first Jacques Whitford office to have work space in a LEED building,” says Hocquard. “What makes this truly exciting is we have grown over the years to have three Saint John offices, and this year we will be bringing our offices together to be located in one of the greenest buildings in the city.”

Jacques Whitford employs 160 people in New Brunswick with offices in Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton. Approximately 60 of which, including the firm’s Executive Office, are located in Saint John. The company expects growth of ten to twenty percent for its New Brunswick operations over the next five years.