NYC Paves Way for New Green Legislation

NEW YORK CITY-Solar, wind and other energy efficient measures may soon become part of the city's municpal zoning code. The New York City Department of City Planning has proposed an amendment on Dec. 12 that would remove zoning impediments to the construction and retrofitting of green buildings, documents show.

Under the proposal, the city says the regulations would tighten the energy standards for new and existing properties and give building owners more choices to improve environmental performance.

“The zoning drawn up in 1961 did not envision a city of new green buildings, nor did it foresee the retrofittings of older buildings,” says city planning commissioner Amanda Burden, in a blog post from the US Green Building Council. “Today, we are at a crossroads with respect to the performance of our buildings. We know that they must accomplish much more than they were once designed to do – they can save energy and generate clean, renewable power, reduce the burdens they place on city infrastructure, support our ecology and provide a healthier environment for New Yorkers.”

The initiative, called “Zone Green,” compliments plaNYC, the city’s long-term master plan that aims to improve over one million buildings with energy efficient features, which cost $15 billion per year to power and heat, and account for 80% of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. According to Burden, the city’s existing building stock will represent 85% of its total supply by 2030, making energy-efficient features “crucial” to the health and sustainability of New York’s future.

According to the DCP, the zone green legislation would enable solar panels to be added on top of any building roof; allow sun control devices; allow wind turbines on taller buildings near the waterfront; allow energy efficient walls, aka external insulation; permit rooftop gardens; and allow vehicle charging stations. In addition, related legislation would tighten the energy performance standards for a building’s walls, windows and roofs.

Burden says many buildings built before 1961 are subject to the New York State Multiple Dwelling Law and would not be able to take part in the proposed revision for external insulation. However, a separate piece of legislation targeting the amendment of the MDL would allow energy-efficient walls to be upgraded into buildings built before 1961.

Burden says the initiative can “unlock the potential” for as much as $800 million per year in energy savings, if implemented. The proposal will undergo a complete public review process through all community boards, borough boards and borough presidents for review and comment, followed by the City Planning Commission and City Council for a final vote.

In addition to existing buildings, the proposal can also work to benefit many developments and projects in the pipeline. Cesar J. Claro, president & CEO of the Staten Island Economic Development Corp., tells GlobeSt.com that the proposed amendment can help SIEDC’s plan for the establishment of the borough’s own “Green Zone” by addressing deficiencies in the existing zoning regulations that impede green building improvements.

The SIEDC is working to bring clean tech and green industrial facilities to 4,000 acres of underdeveloped manufacturing lands along the West Shore, spanning from the foot of Goethals Bridge down to the Fresh Kills Landfill, as GlobeSt.com previously reported.

“This will allow for additional green developments along the West Shore of Staten Island, such as, rooftop greenhouses, electric vehicle charging stations, as well as expanded usage of solar panels and sun control devices,” Claro says, in an e-mail. “This amendment is a step in the right direction toward bringing NYC codes and regulation into the 21st century, and can only benefit the Staten Island Green Zone as well."