100 City View

100 City View, managed by Granite Properties, received the 2021 Excellence in Tenant Care Award from CRE Insight Journal. The award was created to recognize a building for excellence in tenant care, including health and wellbeing, communications, tenant engagement, and/or other activities that express care for building tenants.

A 249,455 square feet, Class A building located in the Cumberland/Galleria submarket of Atlanta, Georgia, 100 City View was built in 2000. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, at the time of winning this award, Granite Properties had grown to become one of the country’s leading privately held commercial real estate investment, development, and management companies and managed more than 9.5 million square feet of Class A office space in Southern California, Colorado, Texas, and Georgia.

Tenant Care Programs

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Granite Properties began actively monitoring the ever-changing effects of COVID-19 on the built environment and tenants. In response, Granite Properties’ teams implemented the Property Experience (Property Management) Team COVID Taskforce and the #InspireWellness initiative to help address the evolving needs of tenants during the pandemic.

#InspireWellness emphasized three core components: increased customer communication, building system upgrades, and enhanced building procedures.

• Increased Customer Communication was made to address the uncertainty felt by individuals during the pandemic. Granite Properties sought to maintain quality communication and continue nurturing the valuable tenant-landlord relationships. This was done through:
  • Regular communication on building upgrades and protocols; sharing information related to state and local mandates; best practices for staying safe and healthy; and updates to building signage
  • An easily accessible resources database containing office needs for safety supplies
  • Creating and sharing building re-entry videos
  • #InspireWellness educational seminars in which tenants had an opportunity to ask questions and learn more
• Building System Upgrades were completed to ensure the safest tenant environment possible upon reentry. A few of these upgrades included:
  • Touchless features installed throughout all restrooms, including flush, faucets, soap, and paper
  • Needlepoint Bipolar Ionization (NPBI) implemented in buildings and elevators
  • Demand control sensors to assist in limiting unwanted air in spaces
  • Touchless door sensors on high traffic doors
• Enhanced Building Procedures were developed to provide tenants with reassurance and safety in their reentry into properties. This was accomplished through:
  • Personal protective equipment requirements for Granite Properties staff and vendors
  • Shifting the community creation platform to all virtual with weekly newsletters, virtual DIY classes, concerts, lunch and learns, and more
  • Enhanced cleaning and disinfection procedures with Granite Properties’ janitorial service provider
  • Development of a step-by-step COVID-19 case reporting procedure

These steps encompassed the #InspireWellness initiative. The impact of this initiative was tracked through customer surveys and daily occupancy tracking.

Program Impact

Granite Properties tracked the impact of the program through surveys on comfortability, return to the office, work situation, and future investment priorities.

“Daily building occupancy at 100 City View trended up in 2021,” said Laura Faenza, Assistant Property Manager with Granite Properties. “Based on surveys in Q1 and Q2 of 2021, 60-percent of respondents were working in the office part or full time, compared to 42 percent in 2020. Comfortability levels on going into the office increased 14 percent between 2020 and 2021. In an annual 2020 survey, our Net Promotor Score, which measures the likelihood for a customer to recommend our commercial office space to others, increased three percent from pre-COVID.”

The number-driven approach implemented at 100 City View allowed Granite Properties to improve tenant care and even increase their Net Promotor Score during the COVID-19 pandemic.