PK Realty Management

Case Study

Overview

Name: PK Realty Management

PK Realty Management is a family-owned company specialising in asset management and real estate development in Greater Portland, Maine. In addition to managing 18 properties, the company is currently redeveloping a former World War II Liberty Shipyard site in South Portland, Maine known as the Yard South.

More info: https://www.pkrealtymgmt.com

Challenges

PK Realty Management values their relationships with neighbourhood groups and local government agencies. The Yard South required a sustainability plan that is visionary yet works within the constraints of available resources and incorporates community input.

Key challenges:

No coherent sustainability strategy.
Reconciling “developer and sustainability” in the mind of the local community – how to create a coherent narrative.
In need of a system to centralise data and project management

OnePlanet Solution

OnePlanet was engaged by PK Realty Management to create the sustainability strategy for the Yard South project and later the company’s other assets. PK Realty chose to use the One Planet Living framework for its ability to provide a continuous, comprehensive and coordinated improvement process as opposed to a one-time checklist approach.

To increase engagement with the local government, OnePlanet mapped One Climate Future Plan, a climate action plan established between Portland and South Portland, Maine on the OnePlanet.com platform. The Yard South’s sustainability framework includes key goals from this joint action plan in addition to information gathered during several community outreach events organised by OnePlanet.

These online workshops were comprised of key partners such as neighbourhood associations, community organizers, local economic development and planning representatives. This engagement provided a rich source of ideas and strategies to incorporate into the greater company vision and identified regulatory barriers that would need to be overcome.

The OnePlanet approach and platform :

An ‘Ecosystem Plan’ outlining PK’s key goals and mapping their alignment with city-wide climate initiative.
Collaboration with local government agencies.
Community and stakeholder engagement
Training of the team on the OnePlanet.com platform

OnePlanet has allowed us to build a comprehensive sustainability platform that tracks the Yard South's performance over time - from pre-development to post-occupancy.

The mapping is a sophisticated data visualisation tool that effectively communicates the interconnectivity of each outcome, action and indicator as well as the alignment with regional and state climate action plans

Amy Magida, Project Manager, Development and Sustainability

Benefits and Return on Investment

Project management: simplification of project and data management and ensuring alignment with company goals in all properties saving time.
Collaboration: clear narrative and alignment with local government’s climate plan exceeded expectations in getting buy-in delivering value.

Specific benefits:

Value add: Clear and comprehensive framework to guide the rezoning, design and construction of the Yard South development.