Wells REIT II Property Earns LEED Gold Certification
Manhattan Towers, Suburban LA, attains green building standard
NORCROSS, Ga. (Feb. 9, 2010) - Manhattan Towers, a suburban Los Angeles office property owned by Wells REIT II, has won a gold-level certification under LEED, the standard for environmental real estate practices.
LEED - Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design - is a national benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. Certification is administered by the U.S. Green Building Council. Gold certification is the second-highest of four classifications under LEED standards.
It's the sixth LEED certification - and the first for a pre-existing building - for Wells REIT II, a real estate investment trust specializing in Class-A office properties. Under recent management initiatives, the property has reduced its water use, recycled 75 percent of all office waste, and scored a high rating of 84 under ENERGY STAR® standards.
"In today's world, outstanding real estate means outstanding environmental practices," said Don Henry, chief real estate officer, Wells Real Estate Funds. "This leadership recognition is indicative of our approach, which is to operate every property as responsibly as we can when it comes to green building practices."
Manhattan Towers is located at 1230 and 1240 Rosecrans Ave. in Manhattan Beach, Calif., southwest of Los Angeles; the certification covers the 1230 building. The two buildings make up 310,000 square feet.
Manhattan Towers was built in 1985 and acquired by Wells in 2004. "This certification proves that a building doesn't have to be brand-new to operate at the very highest environmental standards," Henry said.
Wells REIT II owns 85 office and industrial buildings in 23 states; Washington, D.C.; and Moscow, Russia, covering more than 20 million square feet. For more information on the REIT, visit http://www.wellsreitii.com/.
Wells REIT II is a program of Wells Real Estate Funds, a national real estate investment company founded in suburban Atlanta in 1984. Since its inception, Wells investment offerings - current and closed - have invested more than $12 billion in real estate for more than 250,000 investors. For more information about Wells Real Estate Funds, see http://www.wellsref.com/.
This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements can generally be identified by our use of forward-looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "estimate," "believe," "continue," or other similar words. Readers of this press release should be aware that there are various factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from any forward-looking statements made in this release. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, changes in general economic and business conditions, industry trends, changes in government rules and regulations (including changes in tax laws), and increases in interest rates. Accordingly, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The identifier "Wells Real Estate Funds" is used generally in this communication, and not always in reference to Wells Real Estate Funds, Inc. The portfolios referenced are separate entities, as explained in the products' prospectuses. This is neither an offer nor a solicitation to purchase securities. Such an offer can be made only by prospectus. For a prospectus, contact Wells Investment Securities, Inc., 6200 The Corners Pkwy., Norcross, Ga. 30092-3365 (tel. 800-448-1010). SEC filings:
http://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgaraction=getcompany&CIK=0001252849&owner=include.
