GREEN-ROOF TAX INCENTIVES, P.2

Also attending the Green Homes seminar and hearing a presentation by Teresa Crimmens of the Bronx River Alliance was Diane Fleck, a resident at 200 Riverside Boulevard at 70th Street on the Upper West Side. Fleck would like to see an organic roof garden flourish at that Trump condominium. Her husband Ira, who is on the condo's five-member board, presented the idea of a roof garden to his colleagues in early September, bringing with him calculations on the value of Albany's tax abatement. Sites for the garden include 3,000-square foot roof esplanades on the third and fifth floors, as well as the building's roof, 48 stories above Riverside Park.

If the full board approves, Fleck is ready to call in a structural engineer. Fleck also wants to set up compost bins for much of the building's kitchen waste and recruit volunteers to begin an organic garden if the board approves.

Application Deadlines and Dates

Larry Levine, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, who took questions at the Green Homes event, believes the tax abatement for green roofs would be available as of January 1, 2009 (the date applications can be filed) with qualifying projects eligible to incur costs as of the date the bill was signed, which was August 5, 2008. A deadline of March 15, 2009, for the submission of documents applies to projects spanning each current fiscal year, which ends every June 30.

Requirements for a successful application include a certification by an architect, engineer, or other qualified professional that the roof meets the law's requirements, which include a commitment by the co-op or condo corporation to maintain the green roof for at least three years and allow periodic inspections. The New York City Department of Finance and the Department of Buildings will probably both have roles in administering the tax abatement. The abatement is a one-time benefit and can only be taken over one year.

Levine adds that the city may be considering modifying residential water bills to reflect not only the cost of providing water but of treating storm-water runoff from paved surfaces. If a building installs a green roof, he says, the city considers a corresponding reduction in water charges.

In addition to the other benefits, says Hoffman of Earth Pledge, there's also the aesthetic value of a green roof, which "makes what is otherwise wasted space into a living, pleasant, garden area. Most of the green roofs we have had anything to do with have a place for people as well, like a little terrace. So you get that aesthetic benefit, whether you're sitting out on the green roof or viewing it through a window."

Adapted from Habitat October 2008. For the complete article and more, join our Archive >>

Illustration by Marcellus Hall