Awards for South Africa’s top-rated Green Star SA buildings, as well as for the country’s top-rated building professionals who have contributed to green building in South Africa, have been announced at the Green Star SA Leadership Awards 2015.

The awards were announced at the Green Building Convention in Cape Town.

Hotel Verde, near the Cape Town International Airport, was named the winner in the Highest Rated building category for its Existing Building Performance (EBP) Pilot tool rating.

Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) CEO Brian Wilkinson said the award is given to a project that achieves the highest points in the final rating for the 12-month period under consideration.

“Hotel Verde, with its 6-Star Green Star SA EBP rating showcases some of the most advanced, environmentally conscious technological installations, construction methods, procurement and operational practices of any hotel in the country.”

Hotel Verde is owned by Mario Delicio, with Andre Harms from Ecolution as the project’s Accredited Professional (AP).

The runner-up in the category was the Upper Grayston Building, in Sandton, which is owned by Tower Property Fund. Its APs are Annelide Sherrat and Marloes Reinink of Solid Green.

Wilkinson said the Green Building Convention this year aimed to ‘Inspire Better Buildings’. Leading building professionals and projects had risen to the challenge.

“As we do, they constantly work towards designing, building and operating better, greener buildings that tread lightly on our stressed planet. These winners are at the forefront of making a difference in the built environment. They are leading by example in the greening and sustainability space,” he added.

Monte Circle Building A, part of a commercial office park development near Monte Casino owned by Abland, won the best quality submission award. It received a 4-Star Green Star SA Office v1 Design rating.

The Gatehouse building at Black River Park in Observatory, Cape Town, owned by Redefine Properties, was selected as the runner-up for its EBP pilot tool rating.

Alison Grove of WSP Green by Design, experts in sustainability in the built environment, was awarded the Established Green Star for her outstanding and ongoing contribution to green building in South Africa, with Jaco Kemp of Arup the runner-up.

Mauritz Kruger of Royal HaskoningDHV was awarded the Rising Green Star award, with Nick Gorrie of Agama as the category’s runner-up.