Green Business Law
Marquiss Wind Power to NYC: Test Drive a Free Wind Turbine
Apparently unfazed by recent skepticism from local engineers and architects aimed at Mayor Bloomberg’s plans to install wind turbines on Gotham’s skyscrapers and bridges, California-based Marquiss Wind Power has offered to donate one of its turbine systems to the city in order to demonstrate that the Mayor’s idea is in fact viable. The company’s patented roof-top wind turbine is approximately 19 feet high and weighs less than a typical rooftop air conditioning unit. Its T500 model is optimized for low, variable wind, is rated at 5 kilowatts, and is priced between $30,000.00 and $60,000.00 depending on the specific configuration. According to Marquiss CEO Paul Misso, the company’s turbines should pay for themselves within four to eight years, “depending on wind speed, utility rates, and available incentives.” Last week, in the aftermath of Mr. Bloomberg’s remarks in Las Vegas, experts had questioned the efficiency of wind turbine installations on local high-rises.
Popularity: 17% [?]
26Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
No Windmill For Empire State Building, After All (King Kong, Welcome Back!)
When New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg goes to Vegas, he bets big. At an alternative energy conference, perhaps bullied by T Boone Pickens, the mayor proposed installing wind turbines, among other power-generating technologies, on Manhattan’s skyscrapers and bridges. And why not: aiming to slash the city’s greenhouse emissions by a third by 2030 is rather ambitious. The mayor also proposed ocean wind farms off the coast and solar panels across the city’s rooftops. He’s dreaming big (Statue of Liberty powered by wind farms) while keeping the character of the neighborhood when it comes to the turbines (”If there is a large ape that starts climbing the Empire State Building, it might get in his way” - yes, that is our mayor speaking.
Popularity: 20% [?]
21Aug2008 | Alex Padalka | 1 comment | Continued
Shaw Development v. Southern Builders: The Anatomy of America’s First Green Building Litigation
We’ve written extensively here at gbNYC about the potential for litigation arising out of green construction projects. To date the issue has been on the radar screens of numerous industry authors, but real-life application of green legal theory has been relatively difficult to come by outside of a handful of green-related claims reported by insurance carriers. However, a (relatively) recent lawsuit that was filed on the eastern shore of Maryland demonstrates that green building risk is real- particularly in light of rapidly increasing regulatory activity at the state and local levels. The suit suggests the critical importance of clear contract language for each stakeholder on a green construction project and posits that the alternative could be massive exposure to unanticipated liability for every project participant.
Popularity: 100% [?]
20Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 13 comments | Continued
Final Asking Rents at LEED Platinum Bank of America Tower Hit $185/SF
Hedge fund HBK Investments, which last summer signed on for LEED Platinum hopeful Bank of America Tower’s 40th floor at $135 per square foot, has officially terminated its commitment for 12,000 square feet of that space. The Dallas-based firm will still retain 24,000 square feet on the 40th floor and the Dursts will now seek to lease the freshly freed space for an incredible $185 per square foot. The only space in the building that remains in addition to HBK’s former space is 30,000 square feet on the 37th floor, where the Dursts are asking the same rent; the family will consider partitioning either space into blocks for smaller tenants. According to Eric Engelhardt, one of Durst’s vice presidents for leasing, “[t]here is a greater universe of smaller tenants looking for high end space.”
Popularity: 18% [?]
20Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
Hoboken Sustainability Primer: From Green Buildings to Clean Power
gbNYC has noted two green projects on the Hoboken side of the Hudson previously; we pointed you to SJP Properties’ Waterfront Corporate Center III and Bijou Properties’ Dean Marchetto-designed, 180-unit condo project on 14th Street, both of which are seeking LEED ratings from USGBC. Green efforts in Hoboken aren’t limited to these projects alone, though; Bijou is also developing the Garden Street Lofts at 14th and Bloomfield Streets, which were also designed by Marchetto and are seeking a LEED Silver rating. Meanwhile, Mayor David Roberts recently announced a tax credit plan for residential owners that install solar panels and is quick to point out Hoboken’s taxi fleet that features seven hybrids.
Popularity: 19% [?]
13Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 1 comment | Continued
Chautauqua Wind Energy to Capture Green Power Upstate
Calling itself in the “small wind” business as opposed to large-scale, utility-grade wind farms, Chautauqua Wind Energy plans to move into the fledgling market for smaller scale, residential wind turbines beginning this fall. Based in Chautauqua County, New York, the green energy company will focus on installing and servicing 5 to 10 kilowatt wind turbines. The company will act as a dealer and carry turbines from different manufacturers, including Bergey, Windterra, and Helix Wind. Chautauqua will also act as a consultant to determine the optimal installation for each of its customers. Chautauqua County is apparently a prime spot for wind energy. Boasting nearly constant Class 3 winds (15 miles per hour), the area is home to some of the windiest areas in New York State, which is actually the 15th windiest state in the union.
Popularity: 19% [?]
12Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
American Apparel Bringing Green Retail to Hell’s Kitchen
As Racked reports that American Apparel is close to opening its twentieth store in New York City, we’ll note that the retailer’s Hell’s Kitchen outlet is currently in pursuit of an unspecified level of LEED for Commercial Interiors certification. The store at 610 9th Avenue will soon by joined by other iterations at 429 Broadway (Broadway and Howard) and 2103 Broadway (at 73rd Street). No word on whether the retailer’s 19 other New York City area outlets will also implement sustainable features or pursue a LEED rating. American Apparel was founded in 1997 and is based in Los Angeles. The company has implemented a number of sustainable initiatives at the corporate level.
Popularity: 14% [?]
12Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
Seeking LEED Silver, 100 Park Avenue Bucks Market, Inks Anchor Tenant
SL Green’s 100 Park Avenue was the first of Park Avenue’s International Style high-rises. Located at the corner of East 40th Street, the modern glass and steel tower was completed in 1949 and replaced the Murray Hill Hotel, which dated from 1883 and whose residents put up a fierce battle against the new development. The building’s current owner, SL Green, is wrapping up an 18-month, $72 million capital improvement program that includes a LEED for Existing Buildings (”LEED-EB”) application aiming for a Silver rating from USGBC. The project includes upgraded building infrastructure, a new facade and windows, and a new lobby and elevators; BOMA named the tower its Best Renovated Building of the Year for 2007. Last week, accounting and consulting firm BDO Seidman signed a 121,441-square-foot lease across the tower’s 9th through 11th floors.
Popularity: 17% [?]
11Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
JetBlue’s Terminal 5 at Kennedy Airport: Green But No LEED
Despite its green design features, JetBlue’s new $743 million Terminal 5 at Kennedy Airport will not be seeking a LEED rating. The project’s planning and design management firm Arup has deemed certification “not possible because of the airport’s existing energy infrastructure.” Architect Gensler’s design for T5 includes extensive daylighting and windows, and given JetBlue’s commitment at the corporate level to sustainability, it’s a bit curious that the project will not pursue certification from USGBC, though precise details about how JFK’s electrical grid precludes a LEED application are not available . T5 will give travelers the option of walking through Eero Saarinen’s TWA Terminal, a modernist landmark that has been incorporated into the T5 design program.
Popularity: 19% [?]
7Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
Century-Old 14 Wall Street Earns 2008 Energy Star Designation from EPA
Regardless of your perspective, it’s critical to keep in mind that the most sustainable of buildings is the existing building, particularly when retrofitted for energy efficiency improvements and other green enhancements. Capstone Equities and The Carlyle Group’s 14 Wall Street- which dates from 1912- recently earned a 2008 Energy Star award. The 37-story tower, which stands along Nassau Street between Wall and Pine, across from the New York Stock Exchange, was designed by Trowbridge & Livingston and was designated as a New York City landmark in 1997. There are now twenty commercial buildings in New York City that have received the Energy Star designation from EPA, including Cass Gilbert’s New York Life Insurance Building at 51 Madison Avenue.
Popularity: 17% [?]
6Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued
Sales Tax Exemption Proposed for Garden State Green Building Products
New Jersey may soon be the first state in the U.S. to offer a sales tax exemption for certain green building products. Bill S-1778, introduced by state senator Bill Baroni (R- Mercer/Middlesex) would provide consumers with an exemption from New Jersey’s seven (7) percent sales tax for EnergyStar-rated residential appliances, including refrigerators, ceiling fans, and fluorescent light bulbs. Although other states- including Vermont- have offered similar temporary green product sales tax exemptions, the New Jersey legislation would be the first to go permanently on a state’s books. The program would be called “Buy Green, Save Green,” and the bill is also being sponsored by Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt, a Democrat from Camden.
Popularity: 18% [?]
1Aug2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 1 comment | Continued
SoHo Partnership Enters Supply Agreement for Biodegradable Trash Bags
The SoHo Partnership is a non-profit organization that hires homeless and jobless people through the BRC Human Services Corporation, another New York City-based organization that provides rehab and treatment programs for the homeless. The program cleans a 30-block area daily, removing over 15,000 pounds of trash, and also plants and maintains trees and other greenery and administers various recycling programs. Yesterday, the organization announced that it has entered into a supply agreement to purchase Perf Go Green’s biodegradable trash bags for use in its operations. The Perf Go Green bags debuted earlier this year at the International Home and Housewares Show in Chicago, and are manufactured from recycled plastics. The film that’s applied to the bags is biodegradable, and causes the bags to break down when disposed of in soil. SoHo Partnership founder Henry Buhl said that the organization is “absolutely delighted to announce SoHo as the city’s first neighborhood to use biodegradable trash bags.”
Popularity: 17% [?]
31Jul2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 1 comment | Continued
HSBC Close to Joining Silverstein at LEED Gold 7 World Trade Center
Last June, HSBC announced a five-year, $100 million partnership to address global climate change, agreeing to work with The Climate Group, Earthwatch Institute, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, and the World Wildlife Fund in order to quantify the impact of climate change on the world’s cities, forests, and rivers through extensive field research. Yesterday, sources told GlobeSt.com that the bank is close to continuing its sustainable efforts by leasing 300,000 square feet across seven of the final ten floors available at Larry Silverstein’s LEED Gold 7 World Trade Center. Should the deal close, HSBC would likely sell its 500,000-square-foot headquarters tower at 452 Fifth Avenue in Midtown. Asking rents for the final ten floors at 7 WTC are hovering between $75 and $85 per square foot, and HSBC’s deal is rumored to be “at term sheet at the moment.”
Popularity: 31% [?]
30Jul2008 | Stephen Del Percio | 0 comments | Continued-
Sponsors
-
Green Building Photo Pool
www.flickr.com 
More pics or contribute -
NYC Blogs
