Suffolk launches sustainability group
By Breanne Williams
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Dec 22, 2023

Suffolk Construction, which is active in the Tampa Bay region, has launched a sustainability group for green construction.

The Suffolk Sustainability Group has a goal to “lead the nation in sustainable planning throughout the entire building life cycle,” according to a release. Suffolk also announced the hiring of Steven Burke, senior director of sustainability, and Michael Swenson, director of sustainability.

“Sustainable building is critical for the environment, for our clients and for the future,” John Fish, chairman and CEO of Suffolk, said in a release. “Launching our sustainability team and hiring experienced leaders in the sustainability space demonstrates our strong commitment to strengthening our leadership position in the green building space and delivering the most sophisticated green buildings that will raise the bar for contractors throughout America.”

Suffolk Executive Vice President Nick Dhimitri will oversee the Sustainability Group.

The move comes as Suffolk experiences an “ever-increasing client demand for sustainable building development.” Suffolk is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council and was ranked No. 9 on the Engineering News-Record magazine’s list of “Top 100 Green Building Contractors” in 2023.

The company has completed “more than $15 billion and more than 60 million square feet of projects meeting third-party green building certification standards,” according to Suffolk. The new team will prioritize identifying opportunities for smart growth, how to develop green partnerships and add value.

Suffolk has managed several sustainable construction projects throughout the U.S., including the Boston University Center for Computing and Data Sciences, which is the largest net-zero structure in New England, and the Winthrop Center, which is the largest office tower with Passive House designation in the country.

The company also worked on the Bentley University Arena, which achieved LEED Platinum certification, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst John W. Olver Design Building, which features cross-laminated timber construction to reduce its carbon footprint.

“The unique corporate culture encourages regular review of processes and predictive analytics across verticals. I look forward to leveraging this culture and infrastructure to create environmentally and socially impactful solutions that are novel, inspiring and scalable," Burke said in a release.