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Holiday Inn Gaithersburg Honored for Commitment to Environment

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GAITHERSBURG, MD.— The Holiday Inn Gaithersburg was recently presented with the prestigious “Gaithersburg Environmental Award” by the Honorable Mayor Sidney Katz and Gaithersburg City Council for their outstanding efforts to improve the city’s environment. Awarded each year, the City of Gaithersburg seeks to show appreciation and recognize members of the community for giving back to the environment, while encouraging others to get involved in making the city a greener place to live, work and play.

The Holiday Inn in Gaithersburg completed an extensive environmentally-friendly landscaping renovation in October of 2009. More than 90 percent of the surrounding property was modified using native plants and landscaping techniques that reduce the need for additional irrigation. They dryscaped the majority of parking lot islands, front beds and areas along the building facade, removed and replaced all diseased trees (with a net increase of 40 trees on the property now), and used native vegetation such as Crepe Myrtle, Oak and Elm trees. These efforts will save thousands of gallons of water during the summer season, and river rocks added along the front of the building will reduce erosion and limit mulching in areas with substantial draining.

Accepting the award on behalf of the hotel was Melvin Nichols, general manager, David Makarsky, and Will Everett representing Washington D.C. area hotels owned by B. F. Saul Company Hotel Division. The hotel participates in a company-wide sustainability program known as “Our Big Green.” Nichols stated, “We completed this revitalization with a commitment to preserve our community. The renovation was guided by our award-winning environmental improvement plan which focuses on three core principles: Conserve, Recycle and Act Now.” The team embraces green practices, which are motivated by the fun and passionate approach of “OBG,” who also appears at local schools, and community and civic events.

“We replaced each of our windows and frames to improve energy efficiency; to reduce our electricity usage we installed compact fluorescents bulbs; and we improved the water flow through the addition of 1.0 gallon low-flow toilets in every guestroom,” Nichols said. “We also recycled old carpeting and metal waste as part of the demolition.”

Ensuring the hotel continues to remain committed to the environment, Nichols and his team celebrated their own “Earth Week” in the days leading up to the awards ceremony (April 20 to 24) by installing drought resistant trees and plants. The hotel also is actively promoting “Green Meeting Packages” to their clients that reduce paper consumption, utilize recycled products, use filtered water to eliminate plastic bottles, and purchase local produce (when available).

Go to the Holiday Inn Gaithersburg.

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