Panel Urges Boards to Take Advantage of Expiring Greening Incentives
May 21, 2014 — A five-member panel comprised of a condo-board president, a management-company executive and representatives of Con Edison, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the New York City Mayor's Office last week warned co-ops, condos and other residential buildings that incentives for green upgrading have limited lifespans, and that boards intending to participate in any particular program should do so before that incentive expires.
According to a report by Multi-Housing News, the panelists pointed to the example of NYSERDA and Con Ed's joint Demand Management Program, which provides Con Ed-supplied buildings with funds and technical support for improvements that reduce energy demand at peak times. But the incentives, for which boards can apply here, cover projects that must be completed by June 1, 2016.
William C. Ragals, Jr., board president of The Strand condominium in Manhattan and a panelist at the management company FirstService Residential's third annual Sustainability Expo & Symposium, said his board used the now-expired NYSERDA / Con Ed oil-to-gas conversion incentives when it installed a cogeneration plant to produce some of its own energy.
Needed: Educated Boards
I had to educate my
board. That's something
you have to face.
"With the money that they gave us and the efficiencies that we received in operating expenses by switching from oil to gas, the balance of our out-of-pocket was recovered by us in about five months," Ragals said — though he cautioned that some entrenched boards and recalcitrant property managers may resist even such money-saving efforts. "I had to educate my board and that is something you have to face."
Some programs, the panel noted, are open-ended but not necessarily permanent, including NYSERDA's popular Multifamily Performance Program, through which co-ops, condos and other multifamily buildings with five or more units and four or more floors can get energy-reduction incentives in the form of per-unit payments. Existing buildings that project at least 20 percent energy reduction in an approved plan may also be eligible for an additional performance-related payments.
Ultimately, said FirstService Residential President Dan Wurtzel, energy companies and boards / buildings owners share mutual goals. "We save money, we're contributing to a greener environment and probably our property values are going to go up because of the reputation of the building," he said. "So it's a win-win all the way around."
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