January 2, 2019

Cora Group’s new three-storey office building in Waterloo takes green development to new level

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Long before construction began on a new commercial office in Waterloo, the project’s participants met monthly over breakfast to figure out how the proposed multitenant building could set new standards for environmental sustainability and generate surplus energy yet not charge a lease premium.

The discussions – unusual for the diversity of the parties and a commitment to solve design issues early on – culminated in the opening in late November of a 110,000-square-foot building that ticked all the boxes. The Canada Green Building Council has recognized the office, dubbed Evolv1, as the first of its kind to meet the organization’s new zero-carbon design standards.

“We wanted to ensure what we were designing was going to do what we wanted it to do,” says Adrian Conrad, chief operating officer of Cora Group, the Waterloo-based developer of the three-storey building, now 95-per-cent leased. “It is a no-compromise solution and we are delivering it at market rates.”

The project’s origins date to 2013 when Cora, with a history of clean technology in its projects, responded to an industry challenge from Sustainable Waterloo Region, a non-profit that works with local firms on climate change issues, to build an environmentally sustainable, multitenant office at market rates.

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