Many thanks to our hard-working clients and partners who made 2017 a record-breaking and inspiring year. We look forward to continuing our great work together in 2018!
This year, our footprint grew to include over $1.3 billion in annual utility spend, more than 980 million square feet, and over 900,000 units. Together, we implemented energy and water savings improvements at hundreds of buildings – existing and new construction – across the nation, that have increased net operating income, improved tenant comfort, and increased property value. This commitment to building and maintaining sustainable communities allowed us to expand our impact, completing twice as many new construction projects and twice as many on-site generation installations compared to last year.
Projects Implemented
We are proud to lead turnkey installations for many forward-thinking owners and managers across the country. While we can’t list every project here, the following are examples are some of the things we have accomplished in the last year.
In California, Bright Power completed several comprehensive projects. We implemented retrofits with Mercy Housing across 12 properties, including the installation of heat pump water heaters at 6 of the properties. These heat pump water heaters are 250% to 400% more efficient than a traditional gas-fired or electric system. By using EnergyScoreCards as the foundation of our work with Mercy Housing, we were able to assess performance on a portfolio-level, expediting project work and allowing us to advise on a procurement strategy to manage energy supply costs. To assist with financing, Mercy turned to Affordable Community Energy Services Company (ACE) for an innovative approach – “pay from savings” – allowing Mercy to pay for the upgrades from the energy and water savings over a 10 year period.
Workforce Housing’s 1380 University Avenue saw a 57% decrease in energy costs and 41% decrease in water costs after implementing 7 efficiency measures. See below for a snapshot of an EnergyScoreCards report.
At Manhattan School of Music, we converted most of the building to water source heat pumps and replaced an aging chiller with a new, more efficient modular chiller. We also installed controls building-wide and achieved a level of comfort that was unprecedented at the facility. This yielded a net reduction in carbon emissions of 585,000 lbs per year, 15% reduction in water usage, and 10% overall reduction in energy use intensity (EUI). All of these changes resulted in energy cost savings of approximately 12.6%. Our real-time monitoring MoBIUS (Management of Building Information, Utilities, and Systems) service allowed commissioning to happen continuously throughout the year, proactively identifying several opportunities for further optimization.
We also completed a turnkey retrofit at 6 California properties with Bridge Housing which included boiler replacements, controls, LED lighting, and low flow water fixtures.
MG Properties Group completed 8 strategic energy-savings improvements across 12 California communities.
Equity Residential wrapped up the first phase of a larger strategic retrofit project across their portfolio, completing efficiency retrofits at 8 assets in California and 4 in New York City.
In New York City, completed projects include: the design and installation of L+M Development Partners’ 479 kW solar PV system at Marcus Garvey Apartments, the design and installation of a 116 kW solar PV pergola system at BRC’s 233 Landing Road, and the design and installation of a 28 kW solar PV system at Postgraduate Center for Mental Health’s Shakespeare Avenue property in the Bronx.
We worked with Omni New York, LLC to wrap up a large-scale energy and water retrofit at River Park Towers, a 1,600-unit property in the Bronx. The project consisted of installing a new condensing boiler plant and hot water distribution system, LEDs, and new toilets. It also included the installation of a 1 MW cogeneration system that will provide electric and thermal savings to the property as well as power resiliency. The project is on track to deliver $2.7M in annual savings.
In partnership with Breaking Ground, we completed the turnkey installation of two 100 kW combined heat and power (CHP) units for The Times Square, providing backup power for the first time at the property.
Projects Underway
This year also marked the beginning of many exciting projects. With Jonathan Rose Companies and Phipps Housing, we are continuing to create long-term resiliency by installing an 18 kW battery system at Via Verde in the Bronx. With battery storage, Via Verde will be able to store the energy produced from their 66 kW solar PV system and use it as backup power in the event of another superstorm like Hurricane Sandy, as well as take advantage of demand savings.
Construction is starting at LeFrak City on new boiler plants and combined heat and power (CHP) systems for 2 of the community’s 20 apartment towers in Corona, Queens. Omni New York, LLC’s Morris Ave Phase II initiated construction on one of the largest passive house projects of its kind in the country and will provide apartments for formerly homeless residents. River Terrace Apartments, a cooperative in New York City, is closing out the construction of a deep and multifaceted retrofit that includes solar PV, CHP, lighting, fuel conversion, ventilation overhaul, toilet replacement, and heating system steam balancing. We will start installing HELP USA’s Crotona Senior Housing 91 kW solar PV array atop a pergola steel framing system – a project nominated for NYHC’s Community Impact Award. We are midway through installing a 575 kW solar PV system across 20 buildings at Ocean Bay Apartments, 1,395-unit complex located in Far Rockaway, New York.