2024 categories - Click category heading to access Guidebook

1. Office Building Categories by Square Feet:

• Under 100,000 sf * (at least 50% office area)
• 100,000 - 249,999 sf  * (at least 50% office area)
• 250,000 - 499,999 sf * (at least 50% office area)
• 500,000 - 1 Million sf * (at least 50% office area)
• Over 1 Million sf  * (at least 50% office area)

2. Renovated Building

• Must be at least 15 years old, have maintained a minimum of 50% occupancy during the renovation for all buildings, and three or more projects must be completed in each building when submitting multiple buildings. If entry is a single building, a minimum of five projects is necessary.
  Renovation can encompass:
  - Rehabilitation  (the restoration of a property to satisfactory condition without changing the plan, form, or style of a structure);
  - Modernization (taking corrective measures to bring a property into conformity with changes in style, whether exterior or interior. Requires replacing parts of the structure or mechanical equipment with modern replacements of the same kind but not including capital additions); and
  - Remodeling (changing the plan, form or style of a structure to correct functional or economic deficiencies).
• A minimum of five of the following work projects must be completed by February 2024 and the building must enter the TOBY program within five years following substantial completion of the last renovation projects:
• • New roof, re-roof, or green roof;
  • New boilers/HVAC system/Central Plant;
  • Cleaning/Painting/New design of building envelope;
  • New electrical system;
  • New fire panel/sprinkler system;
  • Modernization of elevators which can include mechanicals, code compliance and interior cabs refurbishment;
  • New security systems can include card access, cameras, console, fire panel, etc.;
  • Renovation of main lobby that includes three or more of the following: floors, walls, entry doors, signage, security desk, etc.;
  • Renovation of restrooms that includes four or more of the following: sinks, counter tops, toilets, urinals, floors, walls, lighting, faucets, flushometers, partitions, etc.;
  • Installation of new windows.

3. Life Science Building *NEW* (Must be at least 50% leased and occupied by life science tenants with a minimum of 30% lab rentable square footage area. Life Science tenants shall be defined as tenants specializing in chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology, cell biology, genetics, immunology, microbiology, molecular biology, or agricultural technology. 

3.  Corporate Facility (Must be single-use facility at least 50% occupied by the corporate entity - includes government agencies and private enterprises). 

4.  Historical Building (Must be at least 50 years old with original design maintained. All sizes of buildings. The building must retain its historical physical integrity, which means the site must be relatively undisturbed. Renovations to the original framework is acceptable)

5.  Medical Office Building (Must be at least 75% medical use, and at least 50% of the dedicated medical use space must be for private physician or hospital employed physician offices. The building can be located on or off a hospital campus, and its tenancy can be comprised of 50% hospital uses or ancillary services (such as imaging, physical therapy, rehab clinics, prosthetics, pharmacy clinics and the like) provided by the hospital, including employed or aligned physician offices, ambulatory surgery centers, clinical labs (such as catheterization). Patient stays must be less than 24 hours) 

6. Suburban Office Park categories:

• Low-Rise (Two or more buildings managed by the same management company; the tallest building being no higher than five stories; all buildings must occupy land greater than five acres and are located outside of the central business district or the downtown core area)
• Mid-Rise (Two or more buildings managed by the same management company; with one building that is six to ten stories in height; all buildings must occupy land greater than five acres and are located outside of the central business district or the downtown core area)

Note: If a suburban office park is comprised of both low and mid-rise buildings, the park must enter in the mid-rise category.

7. Industrial Office Buildings (All buildings, comprising a total project, to include any single building industrial properties, one to two stories in height, with more than 5% and less than 50% office area. Building(s) must have a loading dock, roll-up or sliding rear door(s) for loading, with no common lobby or corridors except for restroom vestibules and utility or fire equipment access)

8. Retail Categories:

• Enclosed Shopping Centre (A group of retail and other commercial establishments, either enclosed or open air, managed by one company. The entry must be managed as a single property, one to multiple levels in height with a minimum of 50% occupancy. The anchor ratio must be at least 25 per cent and the property must contain at least one anchor retailer (grocery, fashion, department store, etc.).

The entry may consist of Neighborhood Centres (30,000-150,000 sf); Community Centres (100,000-400,000 sf); Power Centres (250,000-600,000 sf); Regional Shopping Centres (400,000-800,000 sf); or Super Regional Shopping Centres (800,000 plus sf). No minimum office area is required.

• Retail: Open Air / Strip Mall
• Retail - Enclosed Under 1 million s.f.
• Retail - Enclosed Over 1 million s.f.

9. Public Assembly (All buildings must be publicly accessible and support multiple uses. The multiple use character of these buildings may influence the buildings utility use, opening hours and tenant or occupant relations. These buildings may be part of a larger portfolio. This category includes: stand-alone arenas, amphitheaters, auditoriums, art galleries, churches, hotels, convention centers, exhibit halls, courthouses, stadiums, university building(s) and other buildings that are publicly accessible. This category allows for entry restrictions based on ticketed or multi-tenant/occupant areas)

10. Mixed Use (Must have a minimum of 10% office space of total square footage of entire complex. Must have at least three components that are a mix of Retail, Entertainment, Residential, Hotel or Recreation. Transit hubs are acceptable if the property manages it. Each component must be at a minimum of 10% of the total property. The property can be one or more buildings managed by the same company. It is pedestrian-oriented and contains elements of a live-work-play environment. It maximizes space usage, has amenities and architectural features that tends to mitigate traffic and sprawl)

In order to be eligible for a TOBY award:

• Buildings must be owned or managed by an entity that is a member of BOMA International. It costs $140/year for membership. View details here.
• The building must be owned or managed by a BOMA BC member.
• The building must be occupied for at least one full year from the date of occupancy of the first tenant by February 2024, with a minimum of 12 months of building operations.
• At least 50% of a building's space must be used as office space to be considered for all categories except the Industrial, Mixed Use and Retail categories. Industrial must have more than 5% and less than 50% office area.
• All categories must be at least 50% occupied.
• Each building may enter in only one category.
• An entrant may choose whether to enter multiple buildings as a single entry or as multiple entries only if the buildings are owned and managed by the same company, and the buildings are managed as a single entity and not within a suburban office park. All entries must disclose on their application if their entry is for a single or multiple buildings.
• A building must score at least 70% to be considered a finalist.
• If there is a change in management/ownership, the award will be presented to the management company/owner at the time of the original entry.
• All Office Category entrants are required to provide:
  • a copy of the Statement of Energy Performance generated from ENERGY STAR and/or Official Letter from EPA of ENERGY STAR Certificate of Achievements received within the past 24 months. 
  • OR share date with BOMA International in ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager (INTERNATIONAL LEVEL ONLY)
  • An entry that does not include both of the above with not be eligible to compete at the International level.

Building Inspection

BOMA acknowledges that onsite building inspections may be impacted. Judges have been given the option to conduct onsite or virtual inspections, or a combination. 


National Eligibility Requirement:

• To compete in BOMA Canada's national awards, the building must be BOMA 360 Certified.

Application fees:
1. Application fee: $500
2. BOMA International's $50 portal usage fee (collected online)
3. BOMA International membership is required for access to the TOBY portal. A membership fee of $140.00 will be required. Please contact Kiomi Lutz to register for membership if you aren’t already a BOMA International Member.

All fees are non-refundable.

Awards Submission deadline: March 15, 2024

Access to the TOBY Portal will be available starting February 15, 2024. It is recommended to begin your application in a word document prior to portal access. Instructions for accessing the online awards portal will be emailed to you after BOMA receives your initial application form.

*By submitting photos you consent to BOMA BC using the photos for various means potentially unrelated to the Awards Program (i.e. in the newsletter, marketing materials, on the website). If you do not give permission, please send an email to BOMA’s Events & Member Services Manager Kiomi Lutz.

Read the 'Helpful Hints 2024' brochure for more information.

Application form (must be completed to gain access to the online awards portal)

YEAR	BUILDING	COMPANY	CATEGORY
2024	840 Howe Street	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Corporate Facility
2024	1090 Homer Street	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Historical
2024	Broadway Tech Centre	QuadReal Property Group	Suburban Office Low Rise
2024	Northgate Village Shopping Centre	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Enclosed Mall Under 1M sf
2024	Northwoods Business Park	QuadReal Property Group	Industrial Buildings
2024	Vancouver Centre at 650 West Georgia	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Renovated Buildings
2024	Harbourside I	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Buildings under 100,000 sf
2024	Renfrew Business Centre	Epic Investment Services	100,000 to 249,999 sf
2024	Marine Gateway	Triovest Realty Advisors Inc.	250,000 to 499,999 sf
2022	Pacific Blue Cross	GWL Realty Advisors	Corporate Facility
2022	1090 Homer Street	GWL Realty Advisors	Historical
2022	Robson Court at 840 Howe Street	GWL Realty Advisors	Renovated Building
2022	1188 West Georgia Street	GWL Realty Advisors	100,000 to 249,999 sq ft
2022	Arthur Erickson Place at 1075 West Georgia	Colliers International	250,000 - 499,999 sq ft
2021	The Slide 565 Great Northern Way	Low Tide Properties Ltd.	100,000 - 249,999 s.f
2021	401 West Georgia	Oxford Properties Group	250,000 - 499,999 s.f
2021	Marine Building	Oxford Properties Group	Historical
2020	Three Bridges Community Health Center	Wesgroup Properties LP	Medical Office Building
2020	Translink Building: 287 Nelsons Court	Wesgroup Properties LP	Corporate Facility
2020	Kent Corporate Centre	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Suburban Office Low Rise
2020	Canaccord Genuity Place: 609 Granville St	The Cadillac Fairview Corporation	Renovated
2020	Millstream Village Shopping Centre	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Open Air Strip Mall
2020	1669 East Broadway	Wesgroup Properties LP	Under 100,000 s.f.
2020	745 Thurlow	QuadReal Property Group	250,000 to 499,999 s.f.
2020	Park Place	QuadReal Property Group	500,000 to 1,000,000 s.f.
2017	Bentall 5	Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP	500,000 - 1 million sq. ft.
2017	725 Granville	Cadillac Fairview Corp.	Mixed Use
2017	980 Howe	Manulife Financial Real Estate	100,000 - 249,999 sq. ft.
2015	Central City Office Tower	Blackwood Partners Management Corp.	500,000 - 1 million sq. ft.
2015	Willowbrook Shopping Centre	Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP	Retail
2013	Capilano Mall	Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP	Regional Shopping Centre
2013	Park Place	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	500,000 - 1 million sq. ft.
2013	Robson Court	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	100,000 - 249,999 sq. ft.
2013	Broadway Tech Centre	Bentall Kennedy (Canada) LP	Suburban Office Park
2013	Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Corporate Facility
2011	1188 West Georgia	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	100,000 - 249,999 sq.ft.
2011	Capilano Business Park	Tonko Realty Advisors (BC) Ltd.	250,000 - 500,000 sq.ft.
2011	Pacific Centre	The Cadillac Fairview Corporation	Over 1 Million sq.ft.
2011	Douglas Jung Building	SNC-Lavalin O&M	Government Building
2009	Manulife Place	Manulife Financial Real Estate	100,000 - 249,999 sq.ft.
2009	Crestwood Corporate Centre	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Suburban Office Park
2009	Pacific Blue Cross	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Corporate Facility
2007	PricewaterhouseCoopers Place	Cadillac Fairview Management Services Inc.	100,000-249,999 sq.ft.
2007	Central City	Warrington PCI Management	500,000 - 1 million sq. ft.
2005	Terasen Centre	TA Management Ltd.	250,000 - 499,999 sq. ft.
2005	510 Burrard	Manulife Financial	150,000 - 249,999 sq. ft.
2003	Park Place	GWL Realty Advisors Inc.	Over 500,000 sq. ft.
2003	Royal Centre Office Tower	Brookfield Properties (Vancouver) Ltd.	250,000 - 499,999 sq. ft.
2003	111 Dunsmuir	Parian Management Corp.	100,000 - 249,999 sq. ft.
2003	The Marine Building	Oxford Properties Group	Historical Building
2002	The New VI	CIVI-TV	Historical Building
2002	World Trade Centre Office Complex	Tokyu Canada Corporation	100,000 - 249,999 sq.ft.
2002	Pender Place	The Cadillac Fairview Corporation	Renovated Building
2002	Raven Song Community Health Centre	Co-Operators Real Estate Services	Under 100,000 sq. ft.
2001	1500 West Georgia	Morguard Investments Ltd.	100,000 - 249,999 sq.ft.
2001	Canada Way I & II	GWL Realty Advisors	Renovated
2001	BCIT Downtown Campus	BLJC	Institutional
2000	BC Gas building	TA Management	250 000 - 500 000 sq. ft.
2000	Crestwood 8 building	Bentall Property Management Inc.	Under 100 000 sq. ft.
2000	800 Burrard	Oxford Properties	100 000 - 249 000 sq. ft.
2000	St. Ann's Academy	BCBC	Historical
1999	Library Square Federal Tower	Brookfield LePage Johnson Controls	Government
1999	Crestwood Corporate Centre	Bentall Property Management Inc.	Suburban Office Park
1999	Weiler Building	Colliers International	Historical
1999	Vancity Centre	Vancouver City Savings Credit Union	Corporate Facility
1999	Oakridge Centre South Tower	Cambridge Shopping Centres	Medical Office
1999	Four Bentall Centre	Bentall Property Management Inc.	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1998	Pemberton Building	Torode Realty Ltd.	Historical
1998	BC Rail Centre	BCR Properties Ltd.	Government
1998	1188 West Georgia	Hyland Pacific Management	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1998	Station Tower	Pioneer Pacific Property Management Co.	100,000 - 249,000 sq. ft.
1997	Central Gas Building	Standard Life Assurance Co.	Under 100,000 sq. ft.
1997	Metrotower II	Cambridge Leaseholds Ltd.	250,000 - 500,000 sq. ft.
1997	Edmonds Corporate Facility	BC Hydro	Corporate Facility
1997	Jack Davis Building	BC Buildings Corporation	Government
1996	Granville Square	Marathon Realty Co. Ltd.	250,000 - 500,000 sq. ft.
1996	The Mutual Group Building	Mutual Life Assurance Co. of Canada	100,000 - 249,000 sq. ft.
1996	Westminister Mall	Canacemal Investments	Rehabilitated
1996	SFU building	Simon Fraser University	Government
1996	BCAA Corporate Headquarters	BC Automobile Association	Corporate Facility
1995	200 Burrard Street, Waterfront Centre	Waterfront Centre Leaseholds Ltd.	250,000 - 500,000 sq. ft.
1995	888 Dunsmuir Building	Standard Life Assurance Co.	Under 100,000 sq. ft.
1994	Victoria Board of Trade	Midwest Prop. & Andromeda Invest.	Historical
1994	Standard Life Building	Standard Life Assurance Co.	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1994	Cathedral Place	L & C Management	200,000 - 500,000 sq. ft.
1993	Revenue Canada Building	Princeton Developements Ltd.	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1993	The Rogers Cantel Tower	Cambridge Leaseholds Ltd.	250,000 - 500,000sq.ft
1993	Pacific Landmark Building	Colliers International	100,000 - 250,000 sq.ft
1992	Granville Square	Marathon Realty Co. Ltd.	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1992	Hongkong Bank of Canada	Colliers International	100,000 - 500,000 sq. ft.
1992	Airport Executive Park, Building B	Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada	Suburban Office Park
1992	Pemberton Building	Morguard Investments Ltd.	Historical
1992	Fairmont Medical Building	Morguard Investments Ltd.	Medical Office
1992	Alexander Centre	Alexander Centre Management	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1992	999 West Hastings St.	Polaris Realty	100,000 - 500,000 sq. ft.
1992	Four Bentall Centre	Bentall Property Management Inc.	Over 500,000 sq. ft.
1992	457 West Georgia St.	Bentall Property Management Inc.	Under 100,000 sq. ft.
1990	401 West Georgia St.	401 West Georgia Management Ltd.	100,0000 - 500,000 sq.ft
1990	BC Telephone Building	BC Telephone Company	Corporate Headquarters
1990	The Marine Building	Princeton Developments	Historical
1989	The Station	Marathon Realty Co. Ltd.	Rehabilitated/Modernized
1989	Commerce Place	Colliers International	Corporate Headquarters
1989	The Station	Marathon Realty Co. Ltd.	Historical
1989	The Grosvenor Building	Royal LePage Real Estate	Under 500,000 sq. ft.
1988	Park Place	Royal LePage Real Estate	Over 500,000 sq. ft.
1988	Bentall Four	The Bentall Group	Over 500,000 sq. ft.
1988	Sinclair Centre	Public Works & Government Services Canada	Historical