New York Invests $20 Million in Climate-Friendly Buildings

During her 2022 State of the State address, Gov Kathy Hochul announced the Empire Building Challenge and that $20 million will be awarded to the Challenge’s partners to fund retrofit solutions for high rise buildings in New York.

The Challenge’s partners are the Empire State Realty Trust, Hines, L+M Development Partners and Omni New York. Once contracts are finalized, these partners will be eligible for up to $5 million toward the creation of proposed retrofit projects.

The Empire Building Challenge is administered by New York State’s Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Partners of the Empire Building Challenge collaborated with engineering and innovation experts to create refrotift project proposals that resolve various obstacles in the decarbonization of their buildings.

The four real estate partners of the Challenge collectively own over 37 million square feet of real estate in New York. These pioneer retrofit projects will transform their high rise buildings into models for sustainability and emissions reduction in cold climates.

The retrofit projects are intended to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, which will help the state achieve its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 85% before 2050 as part of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.

The Challenge addresses other state goals as well. The projects include the creation of approximately 600 units of affordable housing, which accelerates New York in the state’s goal of creating two million climate friendly homes by 2030.

The $20 million investment for these projects is expected to attract an additional $100 million in private investment, as the projects may incentivize out-of-state solution providers to bring their innovations and business investments to New York.

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