Preservation and Climate Change
MAS launched the Preservation and Climate Change campaign to promote the positive environmental benefits of retaining and improving the efficiency of New York’s older and historic buildings. Any strategy to fight climate change – especially in New York City – must address how we can better manage and operate our existing buildings, and especially our older buildings. The city’s sustainability plan, PlaNYC, prioritizes improving the performance of the city’s buildings because the building sector is by far New York City’s largest consumer of energy. In 2008, 75% of New York City’s greenhouse gas emissions resulted from energy used in the construction and operation of buildings. New York City’s old and historic buildings provide a vast opportunity for energy savings that can make a remarkable contribution toward the mitigation of climate change. Given that the majority of the city’s building stock was constructed before 1940, preservationists, with their expertise in dealing with older buildings, can and should play a role in developing solutions.
MAS has been exploring how preservation can be integrated into New York City’s climate change, green building and sustainability agendas. In the winter of 2010, MAS hosted eight roundtable discussions with an interdisciplinary group of experts in order to find common ground between the goals of historic preservation, urban sustainability, green building and climate change policies. In October 2010, MAS and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation co-hosted the Conference on Preservation and Climate Change in New York City. This summer, MAS will release a white paper with policy recommendations.
Henry Street Demonstration Project
In order to demonstrate how to improve the performance of a historic building, MAS will work with the Henry Street Settlement to sensitively improve its headquarters at 263, 265, 267 Henry Street, in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Funded through a challenge grant from the J.M. Kaplan Fund, the project’s goal is to show policymakers and the general public how to make efficiency gains and lower operating costs without compromising architectural character or impacting durability. MAS will also be working with the LPC on a manual explaining how to make efficiency improvements to designated buildings. The manual will provide building owners accessible, actionable and preservation-friendly means to reduce energy usage.
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MAS Launches Energy Demonstration Project with Henry Street Settlement
Other Initiatives
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[...] those of historic significance, there is soon to be a ‘how-to’ guide, sponsored by the Municipal Arts Society of New York (MAS) in collaboration with the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC). “Greening New York [...]