757 Third Avenue wins Pinnacle Awards and tenants’ hearts with Alvéole
“The ESG aspect of the program is great. The tenant engagement aspect is seamless. It’s cost-effective. It’s a homerun.”
– Christopher Gildea, Senior General Manager, JLL
The mission
Managed by JLL, 757 Third Avenue is a prestigious Class A office building in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. Like most office buildings, supporting a smooth return-to-office for tenants is a primary focus for the 757 Third Avenue team. They aim to offer best-in-class amenities that help the building stand out and deliver an exceptional tenant experience.
When assessing new amenities for the building, Senior General Manager Christopher Gildea wanted something that would align with JLL’s ESG strategy while appealing to both investors and tenants.
“One of our top priorities is being able to report on sustainability and ESG. So finding a solution that was attractive to tenants but also aligned with these priorities was imperative.”
– Christopher Gildea, Senior General Manager, JLL
The solution
The property team worked with Alvéole to implement a solution that addressed both tenant experience and sustainability goals. They welcomed a honey bee hive and two wild bee habitats on site, nestled within the building’s rooftop garden.
Throughout the year, tenants get involved through workshops and beekeeper visits, as well as an online engagement platform where they can follow updates about the bees.
The highly visible and tangible habitats also support sustainability reporting efforts, generating photos, stories, and environmental data that can be used in ESG communications.
“This solution outweighs the cost a thousandfold. It’s one of my favorite amenities at the building. We put a lot of effort into improving tenant experience and upgrading our common areas, but the bees are always the first thing that comes to mind. Our tenants love it.”
– Christopher Gildea, Senior General Manager, JLL
The results
TENANT EXPERIENCE
Maximizing the tenant experience is top of mind for the 757 Third Avenue team. It plays a key role in both tenant attraction and retention, making it critical for the program’s ROI.
In workshops, tenants can meet their beekeeper, take part in a hive inspection, and even make their own beeswax candles. It’s been an effective way to bring people together and make a positive impact on the sense of community within the building.
Gifts of honey from the rooftop hive are a huge hit with tenants. It’s a memorable way for the 757 Third Avenue team to show their appreciation and impress prospective tenants.
“From the quality of the honey, to how it’s packaged, it’s just an awesome thing to be able to give out to our tenants. Everyone loves to receive swag and it doesn’t get more personalized than honey from our own rooftop hive.”
– Christopher Gildea, Senior General Manager, JLL
ESG REPORTING
Sustainability leadership and impact reporting are key priorities for the team. Adopting meaningful initiatives - and being able to measure and communicate their impact - is essential.
Engagement data (such as how many people the program reached) and environmental data (including biodiversity indicators like the diversity of cocoons observed in the wild bee habitats) collected by Alvéole are used to strengthen sustainability and ESG reporting.
AWARD WINS
757 Third Avenue took home the Earth Building of the Year award at the 2024 New York City BOMA Pinnacle Awards. This award celebrates outstanding commitment to environmental sustainability and ESG practices.
“All of our initiatives contributed to our win. In our application, we made sure to highlight the things that differentiate us from other buildings such as the initiative with Alvéole. It’s a competitive process, but the bees helped us stand out.”
– Christopher Gildea, Senior General Manager, JLL
