Case studies

Lewisham Gateway phase 2 delivers on social value

Oxford believes that development projects should aim to deliver positive social and economic value to local communities and future occupants. The social, economic and environmental value of a development project can deliver both financial and non-financial benefits. Oxford-backed Get Living is looking to measure the social value of new development projects to be able to better assess the performance of benefits on the local community.

The Lewisham Gateway project is a mixed-use development that will bring new homes, retail and leisure offerings to the London borough of Lewisham. The project set targets to measure social value aligned with the National Social Value Measurement Standard. The standard is built around five key themes:

• Promoting jobs and skills
• Supporting regional growth
• Empowering communities
• Protecting the environment
• Promoting social innovation

Using the framework, the Lewisham Gateway project measured its social value contribution to the local community based on 12 key performance indicators (KPIs). The project over-delivered on seven of its KPIs and has so far delivered over £60 million ($100 million) in social and local economic value. Notable achievements included over 100,000 car miles saved, over 250 local employees and nearly £50 million ($80 million) spent locally.

BigArtTO at Richmond-Adelaide Centre

Public art can be used to promote community engagement, beautify public spaces and spark thoughtful conversations around social issues. Last year, the Richmond-Adelaide Centre participated in BigArtTO as a way to continue to build community by providing experiential installations for customers to engage with.

BigArtTO is a city-wide public art celebration that offers free access to temporary public artworks projected onto local buildings and landmarks. The event provides an opportunity for residents to explore city neighbourhoods while supporting local businesses and artists.

The Richmond-Adelaide Centre presented a projection of a film and sound composition called Cradle by Philip Beesley, Warren du Preez, Nick Thornton-Jones and Salvador Breed. The film immersed viewers in cyclic imagery and sound that expressed themes related to growth and decay.

Creating inclusive and accessible spaces

Halloween is often viewed as an exciting time of the year for young children; however, it can also be a challenge for children with autism spectrum disorders, sensory processing disorders or mobility needs. Each year on October 31st, Southcentre Mall in Calgary hosts a ‘Sensory Halloween Initiative’ and opens its doors to children with neurodevelopmental differences. Last year Southcentre Mall welcomed 50 families to participate in the event.

The event looks to promote inclusivity, raise awareness around neurodiversity and support the wellbeing of children with neurodevelopmental differences. The Halloween gathering provided children with an opportunity to visit various trick-or-treating stations throughout the mall in a quiet and supportive environment. As part of the event, families receive a special map to guide them through Southcentre Mall and visit each of the trick-or-treating stations. This experience allows families to celebrate Halloween with their children in an environment that is inclusive and respectful of different needs.

After seeing how rewarding this initiative was to the community Southcentre Mall began looking for other opportunities to support children and youth with sensory disabilities. In 2021, Southcentre Mall in Calgary and Kingsway Mall in Edmonton partnered with a charity, Calgary Wildrose Lions and Variety Alberta, to start the Sensory Backpack Program. The program supports children with sensory processing disabilities by providing a backpack guests can rent at the Guest Experience Centre.

The program is aimed at helping families manage the sensory bombardment faced within a retail setting and mitigate sensory overload by providing resources to support self-regulation, attention focusing and body awareness. The backpacks include items such as art therapy boards, bubble poppers, seek and find books, noise-cancelling headphones and sunglasses.

This initiative has helped to make Oxford’s Alberta retail centres more inclusive and accessible for children and youth with sensory disabilities. Oxford continues to expand this initiative and look for new ways to improve inclusivity across our portfolio.

Providing spaces to local creators

In the summer of 2020, many major cities in the United States became hotspots for social justice protests. During this period many buildings were boarded up in the downtown core of Washington, DC. As a way of showing support to the community, Oxford’s Gallery Place partnered with PAINTS (Providing Artists with Inspiration in Non-Traditional Settings) Institute to transform these boards into mural exhibits that showcased artistic expression in solidarity with the Black Lives Matters movement.

After these boards were taken down, Gallery Place continued to look for ways to partner with local artists. The Executive Director of the PAINTS Institute, John Chisholm, proposed that Gallery Place could activate retail vacancies by providing local artists with studio space to create and showcase their work. By offering prime real estate, Gallery Place could promote the work of young artists while also drawing the community into the building.

In 2021, Gallery Place signed an agreement with three core artists to use 16,700 sf of retail space as studio space. While three core artists are responsible for the space, there have been dozens of artists invited to use the space and showcase their work. The artists are currently forming their own non-profit organization, HUE2, to provide opportunities to artists and work with youth. Oxford is pleased to have further developed our relationship with local artists in the community and continues to look for opportunities to support the local community.

Standing up for inclusion and diversity

With a strong people-first approach, Oxford and OMERS are committed to fostering an environment that stands for Inclusion and Diversity (I&D).

OMERS newly launched I&D strategy and governance structure is built on a strong values-based foundation. It was met with enthusiasm and optimism by the entire enterprise and stands on the following pillars: Grow our Culture, Become a Leading Employer, Investing in our People, and Create a Rewarding Employee Experience.

Employees understand that advancing I&D is crucial to unlocking their full potential and to ensure the pension promise is met: to be the steward and guardian of the retirement income of more than half a million active members. Data shows that I&D leads to more engaged employees with less turnover, more trust, increased innovation and collaboration, and greater diversity of thought (Bourke, 2016).

Great strides have been made over the last year to deliver on our I&D mandate and move the dial forward. With the development of ten I&D subcommittees, employees are benefitting from resource groups, community advocacy and an enhanced governance model featuring senior leaders and active business champions across the enterprise. With a strong focus on continued learning, inclusion-centered employee events see strong support, such as with a recent Becoming Anti-Racist webcast that saw +600 attendees. +600 people leaders engaged in live, interactive conscious inclusion workshops — 93% said they would recommend the learning. +800 employees have already accessed online resources, which provide support on allyship and gender affirmation. Additionally, all employees have access to +300 curated activities that encourage them to be part of the change.

These efforts demonstrate how everyone is accountable to the I&D strategy. With strong leadership, trust and transparency, we can continue to cultivate an environment that is good for our business, people, members, and communities at-large.

Industrial EV hits the road

Oxford’s Canadian industrial team has an ambitious sustainability target – to certify its entire portfolio to BOMA Best, one of Canada’s leading green building certification bodies, over the next couple of years. Sustainability is top of mind for the team, with already a handful of buildings certified several years back, it’s no stranger to the program, nor to Oxford’s long-standing corporate sustainability commitments. At the end of December 2020, six more buildings became certified and the team is on track to certify six more in 2021.

As a salute to the joint landlord-tenant sustainability efforts, the Toronto, Canada team added an electric vehicle to the Oxford industrial fleet. This marks the first EV but the team has its eyes set out on adding more, trucks included. Additionally, the team has a plan to install EV charging stations across the Greater Toronto Area business parks, to support customer fleets and parking where anticipated.

The Oxford branded EV is a clear example of the leadership and commitment the industrial team has to sustainability – to do their part to reduce carbon emissions across their communities.