Contractor C.W. Brown to Develop New 'Green' Headquarters Space
 At the ceremony marking the start of construction of the renovation project at C.W. Brown Inc.’s new headquarters in Armonk: from left, White Plains Mayor Joseph Delfino, C. W. Brown President Charles Brown; C.W. Brown’s CEO Renee M. Brown, North Castle Town Supervisor Reese Berman, and Salvatore Carrera, director of the Westchester County Office of Economic Development. |
ARMONK, NY – General contractor C.W. Brown Inc. announced the start of construction on the refurbishment of its new headquarters building into an energy efficient “green” facility.
The employee-owned company, a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE), is currently headquartered at 30 Clairmont Ave. in Thornwood but recently acquired 1 Labriola Court in Armonk for $4.7 million and plans to relocate its operations there once the renovation work is completed.
Rene Brown, chief executive officer of C.W. Brown, said the budget for the “green” retrofit of 1 Labriola Court is just under $2 million.
Company President Charles Brown said that the initial portion of C.W. Brown’s new 43,000 square-foot headquarters will be gutted and rebuilt to meet or exceed environmental standards. C.W. Brown intends to open its new offices in the first quarter of 2010 as the first building in Westchester to achieve Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum Certification. LEED-certified buildings use resources efficiently and provide healthier working and living environments for owners, occupiers, and the general public, company officials noted.
Green features of the project include a newly enhanced HVAC system, solar panels and solar tubes as energy sources, furniture composed of biofibers from sunflower seeds and wheat. Plans are to recycle 75 percent of the construction debris will include carpeting and wood materials from the project. The renovation will also feature a new roof and sprinkler system and involve the retrofit of the single-use property into a multi-tenant building.
“The Armonk headquarters will be a showcase for green building methods and materials, and inspire vendors and clients alike with Brown’s environmentally forward vision,” said Ms. Brown.
When the project is completed, C.W. Brown, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary in business, expects to occupy about 20,000 square feet of space in the flex building that will include both office and warehouse space. The company currently occupies about 11,000 square feet at its offices in Thornwood. The company will be marketing the property to prospective tenants to fill the remaining approximately 23,000 square feet of space.
C.W. Brown currently employs approximately 26 workers at its headquarters and has employed between 40 to 50 full-time carpenters. During peak periods it boasts a workforce of approximately 100 employees. The company has a goal to grow its headquarters workforce to about 35 workers in the next few years.
Company officials stated that C.W. Brown plans to expand its workforce in Westchester’s area, and its geographic reach to include the tri-state region. C.W. Brown will pursue additional green initiatives, such as carpooling, incentives for employees to buy hybrid vehicles, and the use of green office supplies, they added.
The company recently completed work for BioMed Realty Trust at the new Regeneron Pharmaceuticals headquarters complex in Tarrytown, the new Westchester Community College Tech Center in Valhalla as well as the Graduate Center of Fordham University in Harrison.
This is part of the October 1, 2009 online edition of Construction News.
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