In its role as property manager, Cushman & Wakefield worked on one of the most successful retrofits to date: the headquarters of the software maker Adobe Systems, which received a platinum LEED-EB rating for its three towers in December 2006. Adobe spent $1.4 million on the project, but earned that back in savings in less than 10 months, the company said. It conducts tours for neighboring high-tech companies and visitors from as far as Japan and China.

Image The Adobe Towers in San Jose, Calif. also has LEED certification. Credit... USGBC

“We’re seeing building managers, developers and property managers wanting to come in and talk to us,” said Randy Knox, the director of real estate at Adobe. “That’s where this thing is going to be turned around.”

Indeed, it can be much easier to undertake a retrofit of a building that is owned and occupied by a single corporation or government agency. It’s a bigger challenge for large, multi-tenant buildings, which requires the participation of owners, leaseholders, occupants and contractors.

In addition, market activity of the last several years  when buildings were bought and sold at a frenzied pace  discouraged long-term initiatives.

For those reasons, LEED-EB is just gathering steam in the broader market. “We’re seeing a lot of companies that want to be LEED-certified across their portfolios,” Mr. Gatlin said. The council is working with 40 or so big companies  including CB Richard Ellis, Cushman & Wakefield and corporations like Citigroup, to apply LEED standards across their buildings, he said.

David L. Pogue, a senior managing director of asset services for the Western division of CB Richard Ellis, said, “We can make the buildings perform as well as new buildings through proper management processes.” The company said it would develop plans to certify more than 100 buildings in its portfolio over the coming months.

Early adapters are making a compelling case. Consider the Merchandise Mart in Chicago. Not only is it one of the largest buildings ever to get LEED certification (a silver rating), it is also one of the world’s largest commercial buildings. At 4.2 million square feet, it takes up two city blocks in downtown Chicago and even has its own ZIP code. It has nearly 6,000 tenants, many of which have design showrooms that are often remodeled, and is host to trade shows.