1515 Broadway Beats Stiff Competition to Win an International TOBY; Sets Another Record for NYC
Edging out a field of formidable competitors—including LEED Platinum, Silver and BOMA 360 certified buildings for such corporate giants as Adobe, Hunt's Foods and Nationwide—SL Green’s 1515 Broadway won the BOMA International TOBY for Corporate Facility at the Association’s global conference in late June. The TOBY, which stands for The Outstanding Building of the Year, now takes its place at the nearly 2 million-sf tower, which has seen its share of Tony and MTV awards as the world headquarters of Viacom and home of the blockbuster Broadway hit, The Lion King.

Three Time’s the Charm

But for all the sizzle of its Times Square location and show business base—which is just slightly larger than its fellow SL Green building, 461 Fifth, which competed for the TOBY in the Operating Office Building/100,000 to 249,999 sf category—the 56-story tower won on the merits of its management team, led by Property Manager Kevin Reade, RPA; Assistant Manager Mia Pali, and Chief Engineer Imer Lita, SMA/SMT. 
 









This is a team unabashedly committed to excellence and that commitment earned them not only the highest award in their profession, but another record for New York City. The 1515 victory marks the third year in a row that a BOMA/NY Pinnacle winner has gone on to claim the Corporate Facility title internationally, a streak started by Hearst Tower two years ago and continued by 575 Fifth Avenue (LÓreal’s US headquarters) last year.


Corporate Groundbreaker

In 1972, 1515 Broadway made its Broadway debut, ushered in office development on the Great White Way, and has been rewriting its role ever since under various occupants and owners. It was developed for WT Grant, but with the discount chain’s demise, it was repositioned repeatedly. Today as an SL Green property, it has returned to its corporate roots as the world headquarters for multi-media entertainment giant, Viacom. Fully-occupied and continuously upgrading its premises, 1515 enters its fifth decade on Broadway in its most powerful position to date. 

Among its strongest suits, as judged by the TOBY: the deftness of the tower’s most recent repositioning, solidifying its role as a Times Square leader and a patron of its neighborhood’s artistic endeavors; robust tenant relations integrating education and service to earn high marks from tower occupants; an ambitious energy conservation program reflecting close cooperation between Viacom and management; standard-setting environmental /sustainability and emergency preparedness programs, and a high level of commitment and accomplishment in staff training.

Though it did not win internationally, 461 Fifth’s win of a BOMA Middle Atlantic Conference TOBY earlier this year marked the first time this two-time Pinnacle winner had successfully won regionally to advance to the international level.

BOMA/NY
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