New office building on Water Street could be the healthiest building with new certification

TAMPA, Fla. - A new office building in Tampa's Water Street neighborhood could be the healthiest building in town. It's the first office building in Tampa to be certified by the International Well Building Institute.

"WELL is something we started to look at years ago when we first started the development," says David Bevirt. "WELL has driven a lot of our success." 

Bevirt is Executive Vice President at Strategic Property Partners (SPP), developers of Tampa's massive Water Street project. 

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The newly certified office building is called Thousand & One. It's 20 stories and over 385,000 square feet in what the industry calls a Trophy Office Building. Its high-end office space. The air is double filtered at what's known as MERV-15, which some consider hospital-level air quality.

The light and sound is also measured, and going inside often leads to the outside. "We have outdoor terraces on every other floor," says Bevirt. "It's great because it allows tenants to engage with the outdoors." 

Movement also figures into the Well rating. Many here can walk to work. A healthy workplace has added appeal for employers and employees after the pandemic. 

"I would say that COVID has really been an inflection point for many companies that are looking for something that’s healthier for their employees, a better work environment and that’s exactly what this building offers."

Farmer's markets on third Sundays here draw thousands of people focused on healthy alternatives. The building's certification follows years of planning. Water street was built as the first pre-certified Well Neighborhood in the world.

Surveys show workers in well buildings are more productive and don't call in sick as often.