Building residential communities that fuel the future and enhance the experiences of those that live, work and play within them have long been core tenants of our business at Building and Land Technology. For decades at BLT, we have worked to create a healthier future for those in and around our communities. And the pandemic has supercharged the need for increased community involvement and support.
While we didn’t know what the future held in March 2020, we knew being idle wasn’t an option. We got to work right away, immediately implementing new health and safety protocols to facilitate social-distancing and increased sanitization across our buildings. Our team consulted with experts to implement best practices for our Connecticut apartments and offices. And we worked with our retail and restaurant partners to help them get through the lockdown and beyond, providing the support and space needed to jumpstart outdoor dining.
We established new systems for our residential tenants to support their work-from-home lifestyles, including reimagined amenities like additional workspaces and new solutions to keep pace with increased deliveries. And Harbor Point’s newly-transformed waterfront became a much-needed destination for safe, outdoor activity. With 2 miles of boardwalk and more than 20 acres of public parks, our residents and visitors flocked to the open-air space for safe gatherings with family and friends.
KEEPING OUR FRONTLINE RESPONDERS SAFE
At the onset of the pandemic, no issue was more pressing than the lack of PPE available to the brave men and women working to keep our communities and essential businesses safe. The Kuehner family acted quickly to help secure over 6 million pieces of PPE to be used at Stamford Hospital and throughout the state of Connecticut. We remain thankful to those who have sacrificed for the greater good and continue to serve our community during this challenging time.
TESTING
In the early days, it was also apparent that lack of testing posed serious safety risks. In response, we quickly set up frequent and effective COVID-19 testing for our tenants and employees. In partnership with Stamford Health, BLT began offering free COVID-19 tests to our office tenants and employees over the summer. Since we started testing, we have conducted thousands of tests across Stamford and Norwalk to ensure the safe use of our workspaces.
To continue to keep our whole community safe, BLT now offers free COVID-19 testing to the public. In partnership with the State of Connecticut and Sema4, a health intelligence company opening a new lab in one of our properties at Harbor Point, BLT also hosts COVID-19 testing events at additional properties. Find out more information here.
Though we have all experienced loss and hard times over the last year, BLT is working hard to keep our communities healthy and safe as we adjust to the future. We’re in this together and will continue to roll up our sleeves so that we can continue living, working, and playing together.