What it Takes to Achieve an Outstanding Building

IRVINE, CA—The Muller Co.'s two recent TOBY awards were won by not only meeting the basic tenets of property management, but also by going above and beyond every day, principal Jon Muller tells GlobeSt.com. Two Southern California medical-office buildings owned and managed by the firm—the Taj Mahal Medical Center at 23521 Paseo de Valencia in Laguna Hills and Westwood Medical Plaza at 10921 Wilshire Blvd. in Los Angeles—received the 2016 The Outstanding Building of the Year Award in medical-office buildings by the Building Owners and Managers Association in each of their respective markets. The award is considered the most prestigious and comprehensive program of its kind in the commercial real estate industry, recognizing quality in buildings and rewarding excellence in building design, operation and management.

The Taj Mahal Medical Center is a three-story, 89,000-square-foot landmark mid-century modern building that was transformed into a class-A, state-of-the-art medical-office building. Situated on a raised podium across the street from Saddleback Memorial Hospital, the neoclassical contemporary architecture is reminiscent of similar landmark buildings like the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, the Lincoln Center in New York and the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion at the Los Angeles Music Center in Los Angeles. The building is also walking distance to the Laguna Hills Mall, which is currently under renovation and has been renamed Five Lagunas, and Laguna Woods Village (formerly known as Leisure World). Suzi Mier is the property manager for the building, and Mark Zuvich and Eric Tse of Irvine-based Zuvich Commercial Advisors Inc. are the leasing agents.

Westwood Medical Plaza received its third TOBY Award this year. Located at the entrance to the University of California, Los Angeles campus and walking distance to restaurants, boutiques and movie theatres, the property is a 12-story, 155,000-square-foot class-A medical-office building that offers spectacular views of Los Angeles and features an art-deco-style grand lobby entrance and structured parking with valet. Serving the Westwood community for nearly 53 years with more than 1,200 daily visits and recently renovated in 2016, Westwood Medical Plaza is home to more than 90 specialists in the fields of fertility, dermatology, physical therapy and Lasik eye surgery. The property manager for the building is Amy Martin. Christian Holland with Coldwell Banker Westmac in Los Angeles is the leasing agent.

We spoke with Muller about his firm's approach to managing each of these two award-winning properties and what it takes to achieve this honor.

GlobeSt.com: What was your firm's approach to each of the two properties for which you won TOBY Awards?
Muller: Our goal at these properties, as well as all of Muller Co.'s properties, is to provide the finest customer service to our clients, maintain efficient building operations and superior preventative maintenance. Winning the TOBY Award aligns with our company's value and demonstrates this desire to our clients and the real estate industry.

GlobeSt.com: What do you believe is necessary to achieve this honor?
Muller: To not only meet the basic tenants of property management, but to go above and beyond every day. TMC's management team is always searching for ways to enhance value and contain costs. For example, we recently partnered with a company to track and forecast the buildings' electricity needs, which allows us to fine-tune our energy consumption. We look at ways we can work with the local community, and of course, provide superior customer service. Our entire team, along with our service providers, cares about what we do, and we're honored that our buildings have been recognized for this.

GlobeSt.com: What mistakes have you made along the way that have ultimately taught you how to succeed with projects like these?
Muller: Maybe not preparing thoroughly enough for our very first entry so long ago. The Building of the Year is judged by our peers, veterans in the industry that uphold the high standards of the TOBY award. Every building that enters goes through a rigorous property inspection by the judges and presentation, with the award going to those buildings that meet a comprehensive list of criteria, including energy savings, tenant relations, life safety and conservation programs, to name a few. The process can take several months, and it's definitely a team effort. Monthly staff meetings are necessary to confirm progress, building inspections and the formulation of a detailed checklist to safeguard no major items are left undone. We also practice the judges' tour of the property and the presentation to ensure that everyone is well prepared for the judges.

GlobeSt.com: What else should our readers know about these projects?
Muller: The Muller Co.'s managers, Suzi Mier and Amy Martin, along with their management staff, take great pride in providing exceptional building services. When visiting the Taj Mahal Medical Center and Westwood Medical Plaza, you will immediately know that you have walked into the finest TOBY-award-winning medical-office buildings in Orange and Los Angeles counties.

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Carrie Rossenfeld is a reporter for the San Diego and Orange County markets on GlobeSt.com and a contributor to Real Estate Forum. She was a trade-magazine and newsletter editor in New York City before moving to Southern California to become a freelance writer and editor for magazines, books and websites. Rossenfeld has written extensively on topics including commercial real estate, running a medical practice, intellectual-property licensing and giftware. She has edited books about profiting from real estate and has ghostwritten a book about starting a home-based business.