500 West Madison in Chicago was awarded The Outstanding Building of the Year (TOBY) by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) Chicago. 500 West Madison won the award in the “Over 1,000,000 Square Feet” category. The property is managed by Transwestern on behalf of the owner, KBS Realty Advisors.
“We thank Transwestern for their unwavering dedication to our tenants and our customers at 500 West Madison,” said Dan Park, senior vice president at KBS. “We are extremely proud to receive this award and honored to be considered among the best buildings in Chicago.”
500 West Madison is a 42-story, 1.5 million-square-foot, mixed-use, LEED Gold-certified building that sits atop the Ogilvie Transportation Center, making it ideal for commuters. The tower is home to more than 90 companies with 6,000 employees. Constructed in 1987 and designed by Helmut Jahn, the building is comprised of nearly 1.4 million square feet of office space and more than 80,000 square feet of retail on the first two levels, with more than 45 stores and restaurants. The second level connects directly to a Metra rail station that brings in over 120,000 daily commuters.
“Our TOBY award is a true reflection of the team that is in place at 500 West Madison,” said Micah Larmie, Transwestern senior vice president of asset services. “Our management, engineering, cleaning and security teams give 110 percent every day to make sure our tenants, visitors and commuters have an extraordinary experience at the building. We thank KBS for giving us the opportunity to shine.”
The TOBY Awards are the commercial real estate industry’s highest recognition, honoring excellence in commercial building management and operations in specific categories of building size or type. Judging is based on community impact, tenant and employee relations programs, energy management systems, accessibility, emergency evacuation procedures, building personnel training programs and overall quality indicators. A team of expert industry professionals also conducted comprehensive building inspections.
