GREEN IDEAS

July 20, 2009 — Somewhere in Queens where Elmhurst and Middle Village meet, just south of the Long Island Expressway, one average, everyday co-op has made itself appreciate in value in a way that any other co-op or condo can, well, appreciate — and emulate. The Bradford House co-op made a creative capital improvement of the kind that, it turns out, banks encourage and residents love. Not just appreciate or accept logically, like a roof renovation. Love. See the pictures at the end of this article if you don't believe us.

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June 17, 2009 — Co-op, condo, quite responsive / How does your garden grow? / With vegetables and herbal dells / And a specific set of house rules governing the use of the space, all in a row.

With newly minted gardening buffs following the lead of First Lady Michelle Obama, vegetable patches are sprouting in more yards than at any time since the days of World War II "victory gardens." And that's as true among urban co-ops and condos as it is anywhere. "There's a passion, I think, for greening up the city little by little," says Kevin McManus, board president of a 48-unit prewar co-op at 242 E. 87th Street in Manhattan, where fresh fruit and herbs grow in the back yard. "In the city, every inch of space is at a premium," he notes. "So why not create a communal space we can all enjoy and use, and that adds value to the building?"

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June 8, 2009 — Recognizing what a challenge it an be to get your building to go green, a nonprofit, volunteer organization called GreenHome NYC is trying to make it easier for co-ops and condos to be more environmentally friendly. The group has started a program dubbed House Calls, in which volunteers visit your building to give basic information on green options.

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May 25, 2009 — Remember that scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark where Indiana Jones found an underground vault that got lit up bright as day through an array of mirrors reflecting sunlight through an opening? Well, hang onto your fedoras, because what's old is new again. If you're not quite ready for the expense and installation effort of solar panels, the Boston-based Practical Solar offers what it calls the first computer-controlled system of sun reflectors that do-it-yourselfers can install using only hand tools.

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Oct. 28, 2009 — "Going green" has become an accepted and even mainstream part of apartment buildings — with co-op / condo boards and savvy managing agents playing major roles in the movement. Boards not only have the ability to make a positive impact in their common areas, but to the Earth itself, and has a responsibility to educate and encourage shareholders and unit-owners to conserve resources.

John R. Math, owner of the 21-year-old real estate and property management firm Associated Property Management in Lake Worth, Fla., is a clear-eyed rationalist who offers experienced, practical tips on how boards can have that sort of impact while, sometimes quickly, sometimes in the long run, saving money.

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April 22, 2009 — New York City Council today introduced environmental legislation that, if passed, will mandate some of the most sweeping upgrades to buildings since the fire and safety regulations of the previous century.

Most affected by the proposals are buildings of 50,000 square feet or more, which will be required to conduct an energy audit every decade, with results triggering proscribed upgrades.

Habitatmag.com in conjunction with PropertyShark.com has compiled a list of all city cooperatives and condominium buildings of that size, totally approximately 2,200 buildings. Click here to see if your building is on the list.

The bills specify that upgrades will be required only if they are projected to pay for themselves in energy savings within seven years. The city plans to establish a $16 million fund with federal stimulus money to provide loans to property owners for upgrades.

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April 22, 2009 — To paraphrase Gordon Gekko: Green works. Green is good.

This is particularly so when going green saves money as well as the environment. And while you can read all the articles you want about how your co-op or condo building(s) can install energy-efficient appliances and lighting, install solar panels or insulate your roof, it's usually easier when someone actually shows you how to go about it. Now, like the old tent-revival shows that brought the gospel to the masses, New York City and one of its environmental partners are bringing the green gospel around town with a series in search of hosts.

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My family arrived in Castle Village early in 2001 after spending 20 years in a Greenwich Village co-op where I had served as board president. My thoughts of looking forward to a life of peace and quiet without board service came to an abrupt end on May 12, 2005. On that date, as many news accounts have reported, a significant section of our 1,000-foot long, 75-foot high, roughly 100-year-old wall fell onto the Henry Hudson Parkway. That November, I was elected to Castle Village's board, where I served for one year as treasurer and currently serve as president.

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When it comes to low-interest loans, you can't get much lower than almost zero percent. That's what the Energy $mart program of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) for years has been obtaining for some condos and co-ops to reduce their energy consumption by at least 20 percent. If a bank in Con Ed territory offered you a 7 percent rate, NYSERDA might buy down 6.5 percent of it. But such low, low rates will soon be a thing of the past

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If you've got residents who might be a reluctant to dive into a solar energy project, it may have just gotten a little easier to convince them: The federal tax credit for solar projects, set to expire by the end of 2008, now continues to 2016. Consequently, co-ops and condos can continue to deduct 30 percent of the cost of a solar electric project — and now without the $2,000 cap. And locally, if you install between now and December 31, 2010, you can get a New York City property-tax abatement of 8.75 percent of the system cost per year for four years, up to $62,500 per year or the full sum of your property taxes.

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