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2020 has been a year like no other. When the COVID-19 pandemic halted all large gatherings in late March, our buildings’ entire operation ground to a stop. However, as we moved to shut down, we tried to consider sustainability as much as possible. Our catering partners, MHC Culinary Group and Levy Restaurants, donated thousands of pounds of unused food that would not be sold. We systematically
powered down ALL non-essential energy draws like refrigerators, freezers and equipment of all kinds, as well as nonessential lighting.

Between this effort and the lack of events in the building, the results were impressive: a 54% reduction in building energy use for April through June this year versus last – and an 85% reduction in water use over the same period. While we never dreamed of or wanted such a pause in operation, we have continued doing our best to be good stewards of our buildings during this challenging time.

Meanwhile, cleaning and safety has taken on a whole new meaning. We spent months this year defining and executing plans to safely bring people back to join us. For now, that means more disinfectants and sanitizers, and less green cleaning products – but those items are a vital part of our return to operation, and a necessary trade-off in these unprecedented times. We hope that they are a short-term change.

Just like events are constantly evolving, our building operation was as well during this pandemic. While so many events were on pause in 2020, our team continued to look for opportunities to stay true to our commitment to sustainability.