Nutrien Tower Receives Distinguished LEED Platinum Certification

Published: Oct 20, 2023

What you see from the outside as you peer up at the 88-meter (289-foot) high Nutrien Tower, located in the River Landing district of downtown Saskatoon, is the tallest office tower in Saskatchewan.

It’s once you step foot inside the building, which opened in November 2021, that you fully appreciate the extra consideration and detail Nutrien has put into its space that recently garnered high acclaim in the form of being certified as LEED Platinum.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a globally recognized symbol of excellence in green building. Nutrien has been recognized in the LEED category of Interior Design + Construction: Commercial Interiors. It’s the first such distinction awarded to an office project in Saskatchewan, and it was only the fourth project in Canada to achieve Platinum certification in that category.

“I love the way the building fit out and design reflects who Nutrien is, in terms of organic lines, NPK-related features, and with its emphasis on sustainability, employee wellness, and collaboration,” says Graham Canvin, Nutrien’s Director of Global Facilities. “Hopefully we have created a workplace our employees can be proud of and enjoy for many years to come.”

Buildings are responsible for an enormous amount of global energy use, resource consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), the LEED rating systems work for all buildings at all phases of development and are meant to challenge project teams and inspire outside-the-box solutions.

LEED projects earn points by adhering to prerequisites and credits across nine measurements for building excellence, from integrative design to human health to material use.

“LEED was created to make the world a better place and revolutionize our buildings and communities by providing everyone with access to healthy, green, and high performing buildings,” says Peter Templeton, president and CEO, USGBC. “Nutrien Tower is a prime example of how the innovative work of project teams can create local solutions that contribute to making a global difference.”

Nutrien Tower boasts numerous features that contributed towards this recognition, including:

• Employee Benefits: Height-adjustable desks, well-lit stairwells, abundance of natural light, nature views
• Operations: Water-use reduction, green cleaning, clean air
• Construction: Low-emitting floor and ceiling products, recyclable materials, waste diversion

“To make good on our purpose of feeding the future and to do so responsibly, our commitment to sustainability goes right across our business from what we do and how we do it to where we work,” says Tim Faveri, Nutrien’s VP, Sustainability and Stakeholder Relations.

LEED Platinum is just the tip of the iceberg for this architectural marvel designed to evoke an image of a sheaf of wheat swaying in the wind, and which boasts stunning views of the surrounding area.

If you stand at the southeast corner of Nutrien tower and gaze out through the glass that runs uninterrupted from floor to ceiling, you can see nearly all of Saskatoon’s eight bridges that span the South Saskatchewan River, which rumbles past the front of the building.

As spectacular as that setting is on the outside, the views from the inside of the 240,000 square-foot tower are just as good. 

Nutrien occupies levels 9 through 17 and each of those nine floors incorporates a different theme that reflects the company’s business and the importance of potash mining to the province. Most of the building’s furniture and art were also sourced from local vendors.

In the end, Nutrien signed a 15-year lease and has a building chockful of extras that reflect the company’s commitment to sustainability, as well as equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Other external recognition:

• Rick Hansen Accessibility Certification - Representative of going above and beyond building code to ensure the building is accessible to those with disabilities. Features include braille on meeting-room doors and textile strips situated on the floor that alerts to approaching changes in the flooring.
• Two-star Fitwel Certification – Reflects the inclusion of employee-engaging wellness amenities like a tech-free zone, wellness studio and gym, reflection room set up for prayer and/or meditation, gender-neutral washrooms, and a smudging room that recognizes the Indigenous people of the surrounding lands and the history of the River Landing site.

“It turned out even better than I had hoped,” says Kim Redl, Senior Manager, Facilities. “You’re never going to build the perfect building, but with input from our employees and the time we invested into every little detail, I like to think we got pretty darn close.”