We Need Your Feedback! CalRecycle Draft Report - California's Goal of Recycling 75% of Solid Waste by 2020

BOMA San Francisco Members:

Through the enactment of AB 341 in 2011, the California Legislature and Governor Jerry Brown set a state goal of recycling 75% of solid waste by 2020.

In an effort to meet this goal, the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery, or CalRecycle, was tasked with preparing a report - to be submitted to the Legislature on our before January 1, 2014 - which will focus on suggested strategies to achieve the state’s policy goal.

Click here for a copy of the draft work plan released by CalRecycle.  This initial document has identified a number of strategies that CalRecyle deems as critical for reaching the 75% goal: increasing recycling infrastructure, increasing commercial recycling and extended producer responsibility.

CalRecyle is soliciting input on the major suggestions identified in this initial draft.  Our BOMA California advocates have asked the Department for an extension of time to do so and have been given an extra 15 days to provide comments.  Please share this document with your colleagues so that they may be able to review and provide guidance for our industry's position.  Please have them submit their feedback to Matthew Hargrove at mhargrove@cbpa.com by July 6.

BOMA International Advocacy Update - Landlord–Tenant Collaboration Guide, Code Hearings, Regulation of Lead, and More!

Landlord–Tenant Collaboration Guide Conquers the Split–Incentive

BOMA International in collaboration with the Rocky Mountain Institute has released "Working Together for Sustainability: The RMI–BOMA Guide for Landlords and Tenants," a free e–book filled with resources to help landlords and tenants collaborate on energy efficiency goals for buildings. The guide outlines five steps both tenants and landlords can initiate that impact and addresses green lease and split incentive issues. The e–book also includes dozens of online resources across the five major "steps" of collaboration.

Download for free.


BOMA Defends CRE in Building Code Hearings

BOMA’s building codes team recently attended the 12–day International Code Council (ICC) Hearings in Dallas to establish the requirements for the 2015 International Building Codes. In preparation for the meeting, BOMA staff reviewed and then testified on many of the 1600 code change proposals, many of which would have negatively impacted the real estate industry. This hearing was the first of two hearings; its purpose was to establish the recommendations by the ICC committees.
We had some major successes! Our opposition to mandatory firefighter air replenishment stations was moved to the appendix (where its adoption by states and localities will not be automatic); we harmonized the ICC with the revised 2010 ADA standards; and electronic water leak detection for all plumbing fixtures were not approved, based on our objection. A complete report of the results is listed on the iccsafe.org website.

The final action hearings on these recommendations will be completed this October in Portland, Oregon.


House Bill Would Limit EPA’s Regulation of Lead

On June 7, Rep. John Sullivan (R–Okla.) introduced H.R. 5911, the "Lead Exposure Reduction Amendments Act of 2012" to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act relating to lead–based paint renovation and remodeling activities. The intent of the legislation is to clarify some outstanding issues related to recent regulations that have already gone into effect for residential real estate, and to apply them to any future rulemaking for commercial buildings. The legislation would also prohibit The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from proposing any new regulation applicable to target housing or commercial and public buildings until EPA conducts a study demonstrating the need for such an action. The bill has fourteen cosponsors. The Senate companion bill (S. 2148) was introduced March 1 by Sen. James Inhofe (R–Okla.).


Congress Likely to Face "Fiscal Cliff" at Year’s End

Should it fail to act prior to the November elections, Congress will have to address what has become known as the "fiscal cliff" during a lame duck session, as a wide array of temporary tax rates will expire and a variety of spending cuts will take effect that together total roughly $7 trillion.  In addition, Congress must also consider how to handle the tax “extenders,” most of which expired at the end of 2011, including the 15-year leasehold depreciation provision.  Among the tax provisions set to expire include the Bush era tax cuts, reduced rates on dividends and capital gains, the payroll tax break, reduced rate and exemption levels for the estate tax, and the patch to the alternative minimum tax (AMT). On the spending front, Congress must decide how to address automatic cuts to defense and domestic programs that were triggered as a result of the failed super committee, as well as reductions in Medicare reimbursements for doctors and emergency benefits for the long–term unemployed that will run out.



BOMA Protects Industry Interests at ASHRAE

BOMA staff has been very active at a variety of ASHRAE Standards meetings. Many of the proposed revisions to the standards continue to create major threats to the real estate industry. With the hard work of the Advocacy, Codes and Standards staff, BOMA has been successful in many areas. A few of those accomplishments include:

• BOMA led efforts to force reconsideration of the 50 percent added energy efficiency target in the development of the 2013 edition of ASHRAE 90.1.
• BOMA successfully argued for inclusion of more realistic economic factors in the cost effectiveness threshold in ASHARE 90.1.
• BOMA efforts resulted in defeat of costly and unnecessary certifications for energy modeling to meet the energy standard (90.1) performance compliance path.
• BOMA continues to be involved in the ASHRAE process to protect commercial real estate interests.

UPDATE: The Conference for Commercial Real Estate Professionals

BOMA San Francisco Members:

UPDATE - June 21, 2012

BOMA San Francisco members and your BOMA Advocacy team will be in Seattle, Washington starting June 22nd (to prepare for BOMA International pre-conference industry policy meetings on Saturday) and through the 26th for the 2012 Every Building Conference & Expo.

The Conference will allow BOMA San Francisco members the opportunity to connect, converse and learn and from fellow commercial real estate professionals in the United States and from around the world about issues that affect your industry. When we return, we'll update you about what we learned at the conference including information from the following BOMA International Committees:

• Building Codes and Standards Committee
• Energy & Environment Committee
• Government Affairs Committee
• Preparedness Committee

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Original Post - April 19, 2012

Commercial real estate's premier professional event, convening in Seattle, Washington in June 2012, is a collaborative meeting of the industry's best minds—a three-day learning and networking opportunity that connects professionals representing all building types with a wealth of new offerings and learning potential designed to increase operational performance, reduce costs and boost NOI.

This year, BOMA International is pulling out all the stops to make sure you get the best new information, tactical know-how and revenue-building strategies to help BOMA San Francisco members create and maintain high-performing assets across your portfolio.

Attend the 2012 Every Building Conference & Expo and take advantage of the many career—and business—enhancing opportunities available to serious CRE Professionals:

• Increase your knowledge, build your skills and earn continuing professional development credits at the most important conference in the industry. More than 40 expert-led sessions, addressing all skill levels, include topics and issues that are vital to your profitability and success.  Education Sessions.
• Find products and solutions to help you save money, add efficiencies and increase property values. The Every Building Expo features more than 450 exhibits showcasing the full range of innovative solutions, new technologies and service offerings to help you do more with less. Expo.
• Cultivate the relationships that will strengthen your future. Our many high-caliber networking events provide valuable opportunities to connect, collaborate and expand your profit-building contacts. Program.
• Learn from the experts. Acquire insight and understanding from business' top achievers, innovative thinkers and most brilliant minds. Don't miss this year's Monday General Session featuring a distinguished panel of leaders from the real estate, architecture and technology fields who will explore Real Estate 2020: The Shape of Things to Come, and the Sunday General Session, featuring former Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
• Join other BOMA San Francisco members and staff in Seattle. This year, the Every Building Conference & Expo is held in Seattle, Washington. Sophisticated and progressive, Seattle's vibrant CRE community is second among the U.S. markets predicted to be best for investment in office and retail properties, and is the ideal venue for commercial real estate's foremost professional event. Travel information.
• Benefit from the support of commercial real estate's leading association. The Every Building Conference & Expo is presented by BOMA International and BUILDINGS. Whether you are a member of BOMA or not, you are welcome to take advantage of the many BOMA-fueled opportunities to learn about the issues that will impact your business. Make plans now to attend.  Registration information.

Does your company know why you should be at CRE's premier event?  Make the case for attending.

UPDATE: June 5, 2012 VOTER GUIDE - BOMA SF-PAC Candidate Endorsements & Positions on City Propositions

Click on the image to enlarge and print

BOMA San Francisco Members:

UPDATE - June 21, 2012

The recent June 5th primary election lived up to the widely-held prediction that voter turnout would be very low.  Indeed, less than 24% of registered San Francisco voters participated in their civic duty. Nevertheless, your BOMA SF-PAC board members practiced due diligence and informed the BOMA San Francisco membership - and the San Francisco electorate - of the association's endorsed candidates for elected positions and initiatives on the June 5th ballot.

With regard to the relatively obscure San Francisco Democratic Central County Committee (DCCC), BOMA's support of fair-minded candidates appeared to resonate with voters.  

On the west side of the City (Assembly District 19) , we supported 7 of the 10 candidates who where successful. Three of the BOMA supported candidates were not incumbents (Kat Anderson, Meagan Levitan, and Trevor McNeil), while four incumbents we supported were DCCC veterans (Mary Jung, Tom Hsieh, Bill Fazio, Arlo Hale Smith).  On the east side (Assembly District 17), 6 out of the 10 candidates we supported won. (David Chiu – who was the top vote-getter, Malia Cohen, Bevan Dufty, Zoe Dunning, Leslie Katz, and Scott Wiener). 

The members of the BOMA SF-PAC feel that their endorsements in the June 5, 2012 election reflected the political tone of the San Francisco electorate and the commercial real estate industry.  

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Original Post - April 30, 2012

The BOMA San Francisco Political Action Committee (BOMA SF-PAC) has endorsed candidates and taken positions on local ballot measures that will appear on the June 5, 2012 ballot:

Senator Dianne Feinstein

Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi

Congresswoman Jackie Speier

California State Senator Mark Leno

California Assembly District 17 – No Endorsement

California  Assembly District 19 – Michael Breyer

Propositions

San Francisco Proposition A – Anti-Recology Measure - NO

San Francisco Proposition B – Coit Tower set-aside resolution - NO

Democratic County Central Committee – Assembly District 17 – 10 Candidates (for 14 seats)

David Chiu 

Malia Cohen 

Bevan Dufty 

Zoe Dunning

Leslie Katz

Hydra Mendoza

Marily Mondejar

Joaquin Torres

Christopher Vasquez

Scott Wiener 

Democratic County Central Committee – Assembly District 19 – 10 Candidates (for 10 seats)

Kat Anderson

Bill Fazio

Karl Hasz

Tom Hsieh

Mary Jung

Susan “Suki” Kott

Meagan Levitan

Trevor McNeill

Arlo Hale Smith

Jim Weizel

Click on the image to visit the San Francisco Elections Department Voting Toolkit

Energy Efficiency Workforce Development for Building Operations Professionals

BOMA San Francisco Members:


The U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Department of Commerce have announced selections for three Centers for Building Operations Excellence that will receive a total of $1.3 million to create and deploy programs aimed at training current and incoming building operators. The Centers are part of the Obama Administration's Better Buildings Initiative, which is working to improve the energy efficiency of America's commercial buildings 20% by 2020 with the potential to reduce American business' energy bills by approximately $40 billion per year.

The three Centers for Building Operations Excellence will work with universities, local community and technical colleges, trade associations, and the Energy Department's national laboratories to build training programs that provide commercial building professionals with the critical skills they need to optimize building efficiency while reducing energy waste and saving money. The Department of Energy and Commerce's National Institute of Standards and Technologies' Manufacturing Extension Partnership (NIST MEP) are jointly funding the Centers.

The Centers for Building Operations Excellence, chosen through a competitive grants process, utilize multi-organization partnerships and support from local and state governments.

The selected Centers are:

• The Corporation for Manufacturing Excellence in California, partnering with Laney College and the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 39.
• Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center in Pennsylvania, partnering with Pennsylvania State University, Pennsylvania College of Technology, and Drexel University.
• New York State Department of Economic Development in New York, partnering with City University of New York and Rochester Institute of Technology.

The Better Buildings Initiative program creates opportunities for current and future facilities staff of all levels to obtain valuable skills that support a clean energy economy. Specifically, the funding announced today will help the three Centers develop curricula and pilot training programs for building operators, managers and energy service providers, focusing on building re-tuning, energy management, and building operations in commercial, industrial, and educational buildings. The training will outline steps building operators can take to reduce energy consumption, save money and drive continuous improvement in a broad range of commercial buildings.

Learn more about the Better Buildings Initiative. To learn more about NIST MEP's work to support manufacturers nationwide, visit the NIST website.

Supervisor David Campos Speaks to BOMA Government and Public Affairs Committee Members

Supervisor David Campos

BOMA San Francisco Members:

BOMA San Francisco's Government and Public Affairs Committee (GAPAC) welcomed Supervisor David Campos recently.  Mr. Campos provided an update of this work in District 9, City Hall and on other issues that are of concern to BOMA members:

• Business Issues
• While the Supervisor is forthright about his, as he stated, "progressive pedigree," Mr. Campos mentioned his willingness to engage with all stakeholders early and often to avoid unnecessary contests.
• Payroll Tax Break For Small Businesses
• Mr. Campos cosponsored legislation with Supervisor Mark Farrell that allows any business with a payroll under $500,000 to expand its payroll by $250,000 without having to pay the city's 1.5 percent payroll tax.
• Rank Choice Voting 
• He is supportive of the current election system in San Francisco is "open to a discussion on improvements to...the system."  
• San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA)
• He continues to work to curtail overtime and systemic budget issues that, in his view, hinder the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) from delivering transportation service to its customers.  The Supervisor has a good working relationship with Ed Reiskin, the Director of Transportation for the SFMTA (appointed in July 2011; Mr. Reiskin previously was the Director of the Department of Public Works), and mentioned that what the SFMTA needs is management support.  "Ed Reiskin gets that the [SFMTA] needs a manager" said Campos.

About David Campos

Supervisor David Campos is a native of Puerto Barrios (Izabal), Guatemala, who came to the U.S. (with his parents and two sisters) when he was 14. Although he did not speak the language, David excelled in school, graduating at the top of his class from Jefferson High School, in South Central Los Angeles. David earned scholarships to Stanford University and Harvard Law School, from which he graduated, respectively, in 1993 and 1996.

After a few years of private practice in some of the most prestigious law firms in the country, David became a Deputy City Attorney for the City and County of San Francisco. As a Deputy City Attorney, David handled a variety of important legal matters and cases.  Prior to his election as Supervisor, David served as General Counsel to the San Francisco Unified School District and as a member of the San Francisco Police Commission. Since 2004, David has been an elected member of the San Francisco Democratic County Central Committee.

BOMA California Advocacy Update - June 2012

BOMA San Francisco Members:

Please take a moment to review the following update from our advocates at BOMA California.  The following list includes measures BOMA California supports and opposes:

SUPPORT

SB 1186 - Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Reform

This bill prohibits an attorney or any person from issuing a demand for money to a building owner or tenant for a violation of a construction-related accessibility standard, and prohibits an attorney or any person from receiving any payment, settlement, compensation or other remuneration pursuant to a demand for money in cases alleging a violation of a construction-related accessibility standard.

Status: Awaiting committee assignment in the Assembly

SB 1436 - Automatic External Defibrillators (AED) Training and Liability for Building Owners

This bill makes permanent the existing protections that provide general immunity from civil damages in connection with the use of automated external defibrillators.

Status: In the Assembly Judiciary Committee

SB 1130 - Commercial Building Energy Retrofit Financing Act

This bill creates the Commercial Building Energy Retrofit Financing Program, administered by the California Energy Commission, to help provide benefits from alternative energy and energy efficiency improvements to participating owners of commercial buildings.

Status: In Assembly Natural Resources Committee

AB 2226 - Holder of Title Owns Property in Public Proceedings

Provides that the owner of a legal title is presumed to be the owner of the full beneficial title in proceedings before state agencies, cities, counties, or city and counties.

Status: In Senate Judiciary Committee

OPPOSE 

Although there are still many bills in the legislature that will have a negative impact on the commercial real estate industry in California, our advocates have focused on one bill that targets all of the members of BOMA California:

AB 2265  Management Decisions of Investment Districts

This bill unnecessarily restricts revitalization activities by limiting individuals and entities that can help set-up then manage community investment districts (BIDS/PBIDS).

Status: Awaiting Committee Assignment in the Senate.

If you have any comments, please feel free to send them to Matthew Hargrove, Sr. Vice President of Government Affairs for BOMA California, at mhargrove@cbpa.com. 

Obama Administration Announces New Partners Join the Better Buildings Challenge

BOMA San Francisco Members:

The Obama Administration has announced that six new major U.S. companies are joining President Obama's Better Buildings Challenge, which encourages private sector leaders across the country to commit to reducing the energy use in their facilities by at least 20% by 2020. Starbucks Coffee Company, Staples, and The J.R. Simplot Company will upgrade more than 50 million square feet of combined commercial building space, including 15 manufacturing facilities. Financial allies Samas Capital and Greenwood Energy will also make $200 million in financing available for energy efficiency upgrades through this national leadership initiative. Utility partner Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) has also committed to offering expanded energy efficiency programs for its commercial customers, who are responsible for 30 million square feet of commercial building space.

The Better Buildings Challenge is part of the Obama Administration's comprehensive strategy to improve the competitiveness of American industry and business, by helping companies to save money by reducing energy waste in commercial and industrial buildings. Under the Challenge, private sector CEOs, university presidents, and state and local leaders commit to taking aggressive steps to reduce the energy used in their facilities and sharing data and best practices with others around the country. With the addition of today's partners and allies, nearly 70 organizations have now joined the Better Buildings Challenge. Together, these organizations account for more than 1.7 billion square feet of building space, including more than 300 manufacturing plants, and have committed almost $2 billion to support energy efficiency improvements nationwide. For more information, please visit the Better Buildings Challenge website.

The energy to operate the buildings where we work, shop, and study costs the U.S. approximately $200 billion annually. Last year, commercial and industrial buildings consumed more than 40% of all the energy used by the U.S. economy. The goal of the Better Buildings Challenge is to support building upgrades to make America's buildings 20% more energy efficient over the next decade, while also reducing energy costs for American businesses and local governments by more than $40 billion and creating jobs for U.S. workers.

We Need Your Feedback - New Signage Requirements for Privately Owned Public Open Spaces (POPOS)

Click to enlarge.  Image from SPUR's guide to POPOS

BOMA San Francisco Members -

The San Francisco Planning Department has approved an ordinance introduced by Supervisor David Chiu that would change the signage requirements for privately owned publicly accessible open spaces (POPOS).  The Board of Supervisors must still review and vote to approve the ordinance.

This San Francisco Examiner article summarizes the issue nicely.  As the article and the SPUR guide to POPOS details, many of the spaces are in or around BOMA San Francisco member buildings.

Please take a moment to review the Planning Department's Executive Summary of the planning code amendments, examples of current and possible updated signage requirements and send your feedback to Ken Cleaveland at kenc@boma.com and John Bozeman at johnb@boma.com.

From the Executive Summary

The Way It Is Now

Privately-owned public open spaces (POPOS) are publicly accessible spaces in forms of plazas, terraces, atriums, small parks, and even snippets that are provided and maintained by private developers. In San Francisco, POPOS mostly appear in the Downtown office district area. Prior to 1985, developers provided POPOS under three general circumstances: voluntarily, in exchange for a density bonus, or as a condition of approval. The 1985 Downtown Plan created the first systemic requirements for developers to provide publicly accessible open space as a part of projects in C-3 Districts. The goal was to “provide in the downtown quality open space in sufficient quantity and variety to meet the needs of downtown workers, residents and visitors.The Downtown Plan also established guidelines that define eleven types of open spaces in Downtown. These guidelines prescribe detailed standards regarding each open space type size, location, access, seating, landscaping, food service, sunlight and wind, and public accessibility. Section 138 of the San Francisco Planning Code (herein after the “Code”) refers to these guidelines and establishes required amount of open space in C-3 Districts. It also regulates POPOS signage which is the focus of the proposed Ordinance. The Planning Department designed a customized plaque template for POPOS featuring a distinctive logo and required project sponsors to install the plaque at the space. However, while the Code specified what information to include in the plaque, it did not identify the location and the size of the plaque. As a result, many of these sites do not include proper informational signage, which has created a deficiency in informing the public about the existence of open space. Section 135 and 135.3 also provide provisions for POPOS in other Districts such as Downtown Residential and Eastern Neighborhood Mixed Use Districts. Some provisions in these two Sections regarding POPOS are not in consistence with provisions in Section 138.

The Way It Would Be

The proposed Ordinance would amend Section 138 to include more specific requirements and standards for the informational plaques of POPOS. In order to maintain consistency in the Code, Section 135 and 135.3 of the Code will also be amended to match the same standards.

BOMA Partners with DOE on LED Lighting Campaign

BOMA San Francisco Members:

On May 24, 2012 BOMA International and the Department of Energy (DOE) announced a new campaign aimed at accelerating lighting retrofits in parking lots and structures. DOE estimates that 16 TWH will be saved by 2035 if all relevant sites in the U.S. met lighting specifications recently developed by DOE’s Commercial Building Energy Alliance. DOE also believes that parking structure owners could realize lighting energy savings of 40-75 percent, in addition to the benefits of reduced maintenance and increased user satisfaction.

Participating members will be asked to evaluate the business case with the help of lghting campaign resources; build or retrofit at least one parking lot or parking structure to meet or exceed the specification; report expected and actual energy savings (kWh/ft2); and share feedback and lessons learned to improve campaign resources and enable others to replicate your successes.

The program will officially launch in late summer or early fall, and we’re in the process now of identifying and developing additional resources to help BOMA members evaluate this opportunity. Information will be available soon on the BOMA website. IFMA and the Green Parking Council are also partnering on the campaign.

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Tenant Bicycle Access in Existing Commercial Buildings Law

BOMA San Francisco Members:

UPDATE - June 7, 2012

Your BOMA Advocacy Team held a conference call with the staff of the San Francisco Department of Environment (DOE), the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and Supervisor John Avalos' office this afternoon.  The purpose of the call was to discuss the development of the Bicycle Access Plan (BAP) as required by the Tenant Bicycle Access in Existing Commercial Buildings Law and clarifications to DOE guidelines.  BOMA thanks all of the stakeholders for their time today.

Once the BAP has been approved by the DOE, your BOMA Advocacy Team will publish it on the blog, the www.bomasf.org website and our social media channels for you to fill out and distribute to your tenants.   At that time, we will also include instructions  on notifying your tenants of this new law and the availability of the BAP.

Supervisor Avalos is planning to introduce follow-up legislation to amend language in the current law.  Specifically, references to planning code sections that will be updated by the Planning Department this year and to remove references to subtenants - all stakeholders have agreed that this legislation is intended for only commercial building tenants of record that request bicycle parking.

We published the 'next steps' for BOMA members, below, on the blog recently.  Please take a moment to re-review this information as some of it has been updated:

What are the next steps for BOMA San Francisco Members?

Please click here to access a FAQ sheet to review what this ordinance now requires of commercial building owners and managers.  BOMA members (and non-BOMA members) will, at a tenant’s request, now have to:

• Allow bicycles to be brought into the tenant space/or into a bike room on site for tenant employees only.
• A building owner and manager will have to allow bicycles in the building without restriction (e.g., no prescription on path of travel, elevator use), but if they choose to restrict full access in anyway, they must fill out a Bicycle Access Plan (BAP)  provided by San Francisco Department of Environment. The form does not have to be submitted to the City. NOTE: as previously mentioned, the San Francisco Department of Environment is currently developing the BAP. 
• For example, if a building owner and manager chooses to restrict bicycle access to a secure bike room they must detail the location of the parking area and access to it in a BAP.
• OR a building owner and manager can fully restrict bicycle access to the building based specific exceptions as detailed in the new law.  
• If the building owner wants to file an exception to bicycle access to the building, there are two allowable exceptions in the law: 1) building elevators not available due to unique safety risks or 2) alternate no-cost secure parking is available within a prescribed distance.  More details in the ordinance. 
• The Department of Environment will have to review and approve an exception application based on recommendation from - referencing the aforementioned exceptions - 1) The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection (SFDBI) OR 2) the San Francisco Municipal Transpiration Agency. 
• NOTE: There may be a fee for the SFDBI to conduct an inspection assessed the building owner or manager requesting the exemption.  

The new law does not require building owners to build a bike room or dedicate a specific space for bicycle parking. It allows the tenant’s employees to bring their bikes inside their rented space or provide an alternative.  If a building owner chooses to build a bike room, this legislation does not prohibit charging a reasonable fee for use.

If you have any questions please contact John Bozeman at johnb@boma.com or (415) 686-9652 x 116.  Our Department of Environment partners can be reached at (415) 355-3727 or CommuteSmart@sfgov.org

BOMA San Francisco Honored by San Francisco Bicycle Coalition

Leah Shahum, Executive Director for the Bicycle Coalition; Meade Boutwell, President of BOMA SF 

BOMA San Francisco Members:

The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition honored BOMA San Francisco members at their 20th Annual Golden Wheel Awards on June 5, 2012.  Meade Boutwell, President of BOMA San Francisco, accepted the award on behalf of BOMA members.

Golden Wheel Awards: Standing Room Only!

From the SFBC:

For leading the business community in support of groundbreaking local legislation that will significantly expand bicycling as an option for employees in San Francisco. We were proud to partner closely with BOMA on the Employee Bicycle Access Bill, which was signed into law this year and ensures secure bicycle parking for San Francisco Employees. Thanks to BOMA’s support, San Francisco has the strongest bicycle access legislation in the country.

Thank you BOMA for building bridges and partnering with the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition for a stronger economy and a healthier workforce.

BOMA San Francisco's building owners and managers understand a bicyclist's continuous pursuit of sustaining the environment and promoting health-continuous commuting by bicycle.  Our association shares  that commitment and we will continue to be a partner with the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition.

This award would not have been possible if it hadn't been for the prudence of Supervisor John Avalos, as well as Leah Shahum and her staff.  Indeed, the SFBC's early outreach to BOMA members and willingness to work collaboratively is proof of the Bicycle Coalition's Commitment to bike riders in San Francisco.

California ADA Reform Bill Passes Unanimously

BOMA San Francisco Members:

Legislation strongly supported by the industry, authored by Senate Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D–Sacramento) and Sen. Bob Dutton (R–Rancho Cucamonga), to stop the seemingly unfettered issue of abusive Americans with Disability Act (ADA) lawsuits against small businesses in California, cleared the Senate Floor this week with unanimous bipartisan support of the members.

The bill, SB 1186, garnered a bipartisan 36–0 vote and is aimed to help California businesses comply with the requirements of the ADA without facing the threat of frivolous lawsuits.

Senator Dutton stated, “The issue of shakedown lawsuits is affecting every county in this state and the fact that we have gotten unanimous bipartisan support of this legislation as it moves forward is proof that the issue has caught the attention of the entire Senate. I look forward to working with Senator Steinberg in the weeks ahead in finalizing legislation that will put an end to these predatory lawsuits, while protecting access of the disabled community.”

BOMA California representatives are at the table and working very closely with both authors and other stakeholders.

New California Energy Code Adopted

BOMA San Francisco Members:

Our tireless advocates at BOMA California have reported that the California Energy Commission (CEC) voted to adopt new energy efficiency standards for both residential and commercial buildings recently. Also referred to as Title 24, the new standards will take effect on January 1, 2014.

The standards are generally believed to be a 15% energy efficiency increase for new commercial construction, and a similar increase for existing buildings. Some of the major changes for non-residential new construction include guidelines for:

• High performance windows, sensors and controls that allow buildings to use daylighting;
• Efficient process equipment in supermarkets, computer data centers, commercial kitchens, laboratories, and parking garages;
• Advanced lighting controls to synchronize light levels with daylight and building occupancy, and provide demand response capability;
• Solar-ready roofs to allow businesses to add solar photovoltaic panels at a future date;
• Cool roof technologies.

California continues to push the envelope and lead the nation as it pertains to energy efficiency standards. The real estate industry has been able help drive progress through its own innovation and desire to build the most energy efficiency and economically feasible buildings.

Click here to read an L.A. Times story about the adoption.

Click here to read the new standards.