Case Study

St. Elizabeth Manor

Renewing multifamily senior housing with sustainable electrification

This case study was chosen as part of the Empire Building Challenge competition. Click here to learn more about the Empire Building Challenge competition.

Project Highlights

Conditions Assessment

High gas consumption and deteriorating existing conditions are driving the decision to decarbonize St. Elizabeth Manor.

Project Planning

Added wall insulation, weather stripping, and ventilation improvements, will significantly reduce heating loads at the site.

Project Planning

Space heating and water heaters will be electrified using cold climate packaged terminal heat pumps and high performance blackwater source heat pumps.

Step 1

Step 1: Examine Current Conditions

A baseline assessment is key to understanding current systems and performance, then identifying conditions, requirements or events that will trigger a decarbonization effort. The assessment looks across technical systems, asset strategy and sectoral factors.

Building System Conditions

Equipment nearing end-of-life
Comfort improvements
Indoor air quality improvements
Efficiency improvements

Asset Conditions

Recapitalization
Carbon emissions limits
Owner sustainability goals

Market Conditions

Considering the age of all original systems, the building is operating fairly but structurally failing with repairs needed to the face brick façade and roof which continue to experience water infiltration issues, particularly around the windows, roof flashing and bulkheads. Energy consumption associated with space heating and domestic hot water is high. The reasons for high space heating include high ventilation/infiltration, conductive heat losses through building envelope, and ageing boiler. The high infiltration is caused due to unbalanced ventilation, high exhaust rates, lack of energy recovery system, and weakening infrastructure. Domestic hot water consumption is high due to high flow rates from faucets/shower heads and ageing non-condensing water heaters.

Step 2

Step 2: Design Resource Efficient Solutions

Effective engineering integrates measures for reducing energy load, recovering wasted heat, and moving towards partial or full electrification. This increases operational efficiencies, optimizes energy peaks, and avoids oversized heating systems, thus alleviating space constraints and minimizing the cost of retrofits to decarbonize the building over time.

Existing Conditions

This diagram illustrates the building prior to the initiation of Strategic Decarbonization planning by the owners and their teams.

Click through the measures under “Building After” to understand the components of the building’s energy transition.

Sequence of Measures

2026

2027

Building System Affected

heating
cooling
ventilation

Step 3

Step 3: Build the Business Case

Making a business case for strategic decarbonization requires thinking beyond a traditional energy audit approach or simple payback analysis. It assesses business-as-usual costs and risks against the costs and added value of phased decarbonization investments in the long-term.

Decarbonization Costs

$5.6M

Cost of ECM #1: 1.7M.

Cost of ECM #2: 875k.

Cost of ECM #3: 679k.

Cost of ECM #4: 210k.

Cost of ECM #5: 86k.

Non-EBC ECMs: 1.8M.

Business-as-Usual Costs

$51,242

Energy cost savings

Business-as-Usual Risks

$0

Decarbonization Value

$2.6M

Incentives

Net Present Value

$638,589

The implementation of the Decarbonization Roadmap for Sisters of Charity’s Affordable Multifamily portfolio represents a strategic investment in both the environmental sustainability and long-term financial viability of the properties. By leveraging HUD’s Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) for Project Rental Assistance Contracts (PRAC) program to secure a 20-year Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) contract for St. Elizabeth’s Manor, Sisters of Charity ensures a stable revenue stream that will significantly enhance the financial health of the property. This stable income will support the necessary debt service payments on a mortgage, enabling the funding of $13.2 million in capital improvements. These capital improvements are critical not only for the immediate physical needs of the property but also for achieving the long-term decarbonization goals outlined in the Roadmap. The integration of Energy Conservation Measures (ECMs) as part of this comprehensive renovation plan will reduce operational expenses by decreasing energy consumption and fossil fuel dependency. The Roadmap’s capital plan, which combines mortgage proceeds, existing reserves, and subsidy financing from New York State’s Housing Finance Agency, is designed to minimize the financial burden on Sisters of Charity while maximizing the long-term return on investment. The use of this diversified funding strategy allows Sisters of Charity to undertake the necessary decarbonization measures without imposing additional financial strain on residents, as tenants will continue to pay only 30% of their income towards rent. Furthermore, the enhanced energy efficiency of the buildings will likely reduce long-term maintenance costs and improve the overall asset value, creating a more resilient financial model.

Strategic Decarbonization Action Plan

An emissions decarbonization roadmap helps building owners visualize their future emissions reductions by outlining the CO2 reductions from selected energy conservation measures. This roadmap is designed with a phased approach, considering a 20- or 30-year timeline, and incorporates the evolving benefits of grid decarbonization, ensuring a comprehensive view of long-term environmental impact.