July 28, 2014 -
Green Buildings
Roosevelt Landings, a residential complex located on Roosevelt Island, celebrated the completion of its $7.4 million, large-scale retrofit recently with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The "Power on Ceremony," held at the Roosevelt Landings Amphitheatre, was attended by project team members including property owner and real estate investment company, Urban American; lead project engineer and energy consultant, Steven Winter Associates (SWA); the project developer and manager, Urban Greenfit, LLC (UGF) an energy service company; and building economists from KGS Buildings, LLC.
Duane Morris partner Michael Schwamm and associate Rosa Ertze in New York advised Urban Greenfit on the financing of the project. Former Duane Morris attorney Peter Funk did the energy work on the project.
Roosevelt Landings represents a significant achievement in energy-efficient design and engineering, enabled by a strategic financing collaboration. SWA and UGF devised a turnkey solution to design, implement, and finance the retrofits for the 1,003-unit, nine-building, former Mitchell Lama complex. UGF was created to finance the improvements, alleviating much of the upfront costs to Urban American. In addition, incentives for energy-savings were provided through NYSERDA and Con Edison.
Improvements to Roosevelt Landings feature installation of a combined heat and power (CHP) plant and domestic hot water (DHW) boiler upgrade; electrical heat control with programmable thermostats; comprehensive air-sealing of the building envelope and interior spaces; floor-slab insulation; and building operator and resident education.
The retrofits resulted in 2.5M kWh savings in the first winter—a laudable accomplishment since upgrades were completed well after the heating season began. The one million square foot complex was the first multifamily project to utilize New York City Energy Efficiency Corp. (NYCEEC) financing. The project also represents the largest air sealing scope ever implemented in the city.