Tridel In The News

TRIDEL – 2006 GREEN TORONTO AWARD WINNER

Jim Ritchie, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tridel (Centre) accepts the 2006 Green Toronto Award for Energy Conservation from Kevin McLaughlin, President of Autoshare (Left) and Deputy Mayor, Joe Pantalone (Right). Photo credit: City of Toronto

At a special ceremony held at Toronto City Hall on Tuesday May 2, 2006, Canada’s leading condominium developer, Tridel was the proud recipient of the 2006 Green Toronto Award for Energy Conservation. As the winner of this prestigious award, Tridel was given the opportunity to donate $5,000 to the environmental organization of its choice, and has chosen to support Earth Rangers. Tridel then announced that they would match this donation for a total of $10,000 to support Earth Rangers programmes, which focus on educating and inspiring children to respect and take action for the environment.

“We are thrilled to further the goals of Earth Rangers and its contribution to the greening of Toronto. Their outreach programs with school children in the GTA are excellent and are housed at the Kortright Centre for Conservation, one of the ‘greenest’ buildings in Canada” said Jim Ritchie, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Tridel.

Following the award ceremony, Leo DelZotto, President of Tridel elaborated on his company’s dedication to green developments. “Buildings play a vital role in our economy and also have an important impact on the environment and the natural resources upon which we all depend. Buildings consume more than one-third of all primary energy, two thirds of electricity, one-third of all raw materials along with a growing percentage of our freshwater resources. This high resource consumption makes new buildings ideal candidates for energy conservation and sustainability.”

With this in mind, Tridel, began developing “Naturally Better”, a program designed to promote healthy, environmentally friendly, sustainable condominium living. Tridel first introduced the “Naturally Better” program with the launch of its Element community in downtown Toronto in the fall of 2003. When complete, this residence will be connected to Enwave’s deep lake water-cooling system, which will result in 20% energy savings when compared to a conventional high-rise condominium.

Tridel is also keen to promote environmental stewardship among its condo purchasers and offers numerous environmental features. Some of these include a central heat-recovery ventilator system that will provide cleaner, fresher air in a more cost effective manner, along with energy saving compact fluorescent lighting and high efficiency Energy Star™ appliances.

In addition, water saving toilets, faucets and showers, low maintenance plank floors, landscaped rooftop terraces, recycling facilities and increased natural lighting will be in place to reduce electricity consumption and increase personal comfort. Residents will benefit from environmentally preferable corridor carpeting, wall coverings, adhesives, coatings and paints with low volatile organic compounds that help to minimize toxic odours, both in their suite and in the buildings common areas.

In June 2005, Tridel introduced Verve in downtown Toronto, one of the company’s first condominium community candidates for LEED® (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification by The Canada Green Building Council. LEED® defines green buildings by establishing a common standard of measurement, promoting integrated, whole building design practices and raising consumer awareness of green building benefits. It is the most recognized certification system for green buildings in North America. Since that time, Tridel has also launched the Renaissance of Richmond Hill, and Nuvo 2 at Essex in Etobicoke, all of which will seek LEED® certification. Two new condominium communities will be launched in North York this Spring, which will also be candidates for LEED certification

Each of these of these communities, and all Tridel communities of the future will respond to the realities of today’s environment, such as harmful greenhouse gases, waste, pollution and consistently increasing energy and operating costs. By incorporating Tridel’s “Naturally Better” program, every community will provide residents with a high performance, efficient home, with a healthier living environment and reduced maintenance costs.

Verve, Renaissance of Richmond Hill and Nuvo 2 at Essex are all expected to outperform Canada’s Model National Energy Code by a significant margin, which will translate directly into cost savings for their residents. Each suite will be individually metered for utilities, so that residents who use less energy in their suites will benefit from lower utility costs. And, wherever possible, Tridel has selected durable building materials that have the lowest environmental impact, and are either capable of being reused, salvaged or have a high level of recycled content to minimize waste. By the end of 2006, Tridel will have nearly two million square feet, in over 1,800 homes either in the market or under construction that are pursuing these environmental objectives.

Tridel A Builder Known for Quality

Tridel is Canada’s leading developer and builder of condominium residences with more than 70 years of homebuilding experience. To date the Tridel Group of Companies is responsible for producing over 66,500 homes, and continues to lead the industry in innovation, technology and design. Tridel is determined to develop condominium communities that meet the needs of today’s homeowners while safeguarding the wellbeing of future generations. The company is working to meet this goal by focusing on environmentally sustainable building design, performance in construction and corporate stewardship. In recognition of Tridel’s outstanding service to its homeowners, Tridel was awarded the coveted Customer Service High-Rise Builder of the Year Award by Tarion Warranty Corporation in 2005 for the second year in a row. Tridel was also recognized as High-Rise Home Builder of the Year by the Greater Toronto Home Builders’ Association in 2004 and received the City of Toronto 2006 Green Award for Energy Conservation.

For more information on Tridel’s Naturally Better program visit naturallybetter.ca