Short term return-on-investment calculations are a frequent barrier to better performing buildings, leaving the many benefits of decarbonization out of reach for building occupants and exposing owners and investors to the future risks of holding a stranded asset. Future proofing buildings from anticipated regulations–from carbon emissions to human health–requires longer term thinking and innovative financing models.

A number of organizations are undertaking processes that account for the net-present-value of retrofit measures, and are benefitting from new tools that allow comparisons of various phasing options. 

During this High Rise / Low Carbon series program developed to support the Empire Building Challenge and other NYSERDA programs, panelists will discuss exploring how to move beyond simple payback analysis to allow value over time to guide decisions and enable the efficient phasing of building improvements, which will hugely enhance comfort and health while also meeting the goals of our City and State climate action plans.

Opening Remarks

Greg Hale, Senior Advisor for Energy Efficiency Markets, NYSERDA

Moderator

Sadie McKeown, President, Community Preservation Corporation (CPC)

Panelists/Presenters

Lane Burt, Managing Principal, Ember Strategies
Grayson Hoffmann, Investment Manager, Norges Bank Investment Management
Erangi Dias, Director of Business Development, NYCEEC
David Davenport, Managing Director, NY Green Bank

Closing Remarks

Sophie Cardona, Senior Project Manager, NYSERDA

This guidebook provides an overview of the clean energy, climate mitigation and resilience, agriculture, and conservation-related tax incentives and investment programs in President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, including who is eligible to apply for funding and for what activities. The Biden-Harris Administration is working quickly to design, develop, and implement these programs; as such, the information in this guidebook is current as of publication. In the coming weeks and months, we will publish new developments on www.CleanEnergy.gov to keep stakeholders and potential beneficiaries of these programs up to date on the latest deadlines and details. This guidebook does not cover the Inflation Reduction Act’s health care provisions or certain corporate tax reforms. 

This report from ULI Greenprint, prepared in partnership with USDN, serves as a starting point for cities interested in engaging real estate leaders during the shaping of climate mitigation policies, and for real estate organizations to increase their understanding of the potential impact of these policies. It provides useful tools to help city officials and those in the real estate industry engage with each other in a meaningful and ongoing way.

Each of the principles identified in this report is a distillation of recommendations identified during the Urban Land Institute’s City and Real Estate Sustainability workshops, which involved participation from more than 60 public and private sector leaders. These principles are also grounded in the context of specific best practices in cities across North America to create building-level climate mitigation policy.

This guidebook is a roadmap to the funding available under the law. It explains, in as much detail as currently available, how much funding is available at the program level. Our primary goal is to help our partners across the country know what to apply for, who to contact for help, and how to get ready to rebuild. We have also published an accompanying data file on Build.gov that allows users to quickly sort programs funded under the law by fields like agency, amount, eligible recipient, or program name. 

This report, produced by Urban Land Institute’s C Change program, illustrates how lack of alignment on decarbonization approaches between property owners and occupiers is hindering progress to decarbonize and has the potential to increase emissions in the medium- to long-term. These findings underscore the need for stronger partnerships and closer collaboration between occupiers and owners. 

The goal of the kickoff phase is to set the team up for a successful decarbonization project. In this early stage, project teams should come to consensus on the following: 

• Energy and emissions reduction targets 
• Desired economic outcomes 
• The project workplan, schedule, and key milestones
• Required skills and capacities
• Gaps in expertise and who will be brought onboard to fill them 

A critical outcome of this phase is building trust through shared goals and open, honest dialog about the building’s current state and what the building owner hopes to achieve through the project. In addition to building consensus and understanding with external consultants and service providers, aligning goals across the building owner’s various internal divisions is a necessity.  Senior management must set a tone that celebrates opportunities for continued improvement across finance, asset management, operations, and on-site staff.   

At the end of this phase, the team should have a clear understanding of goals, a well-defined work plan with key milestones, clear roles, and the beginnings of a trust-based relationship that will support creative problem solving.

Build the Team, Set Goals and Timeline

Inputs

To set the project up for success, a point-person from the building should be identified. This person will be responsible for setting expectations with the consultant team, communicating with leadership within the real estate organization, and working with the building operations team to support data collection activities.

Activities

During the kickoff phase, activities include: 

• Identifying the team, including internal resources and external service providers.
• Getting educated on the latest energy and carbon trends and requirements.
• Conducting a formal kickoff meeting to set goals, define processes, and establish a project timeline.
• Establishing a tenant engagement strategy. 

Outputs

Deliverables from this phase can take many forms, including kickoff meeting presentation slides and notes, a formal workplan, a Gantt chart, or some other means of communicating the key project objectives and milestones. The team is now ready to dive into the deep energy retrofit.

Lessons Learned & Key Considerations

• Establish clear objectives: Outlining a clear set of objectives based on technical and economic needs specific to each building early in the process creates clarity on project workload, the types of expertise that will be needed, and the time required to complete the work.
• Select a team that will collaborate across disciplines: Building decarbonization is a multifaced and challenging effort. The team should comprise members who are eager to work and collaborate across disciplines. 
• Include the building operations staff: Understanding the nuances of how the building operates is an important part of the investigation and energy modeling phases of the project. Include the building Chief Engineer and key operating personnel in the kickoff meeting and other key milestones. 
• Engage tenants: Beyond the immediate team, it is important to consider how and when to engage the building tenants. Even with the most efficient equipment, a building will not achieve deep energy and carbon reductions without tenant buy-in and action.  
• Connect with contractors, equipment manufacturers and subject-matter experts: Secondary support from these groups can often be very helpful because they bring additional expertise and a different perspective from those in the core project team.

The Inflation Reduction Act includes some two dozen tax provisions that will save families money on their energy bills and accelerate the deployment of clean energy, clean vehicles, clean buildings, and clean manufacturing. The table linked here (last updated September 21, 2023) provides the key information about these tax provisions and links to the latest announcements related to their implementation.