February 28, 2014
ALBANY—The New York Power Authority (NYPA) Thursday announced that work is underway on an Energy Master Plan for the City of Albany to help reduce overall energy costs and carbon emissions, advance energy sustainability and support green industries and jobs. In addition, a new page on the NYPA website has been created to solicit ideas from the public and present details on the master-plan process.
The Energy Master Plan being undertaken in partnership with the City of Albany is one of five such initiatives that NYPA is spearheading for several New York municipalities. The other cities are Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and Yonkers.
The initiative complements the Build Smart NY program, established by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in his December 2012 Executive Order 88, which aims to improve energy efficiency in state government buildings by 20 percent by 2020.
As part of the Energy Master Plan effort for Albany, NYPA selected an architectural and engineering firm, Vanasse Hangen and Brustlin, Inc. (VHB), with offices in the city, to develop a road map tailored to the specific energy-use circumstances and features of Albany. A NYPA-led team will work with local utilities, civic and government entities, and environmental groups, including Albany Medical Center, Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA), Capital Region Building Owners and Managers Association, Capital District Regional Planning Commission, College of Saint Rose, and National Grid. The team will also consider ideas submitted through the new webpage, www.nypa.gov/buildsmartny/fivecities.html
“The Power Authority is looking forward to partnering with the City of Albany on the development of this far-reaching Energy Master Plan,” said Gil C. Quiniones, NYPA president and chief executive officer. “This initiative will reduce energy consumption and operating and maintenance costs, thereby enabling Albany to redeploy resources to other priority functions, providing a net benefit to the city and community.”
"The City of Albany is committed to becoming a place where families and business want to call home and a key component of our sustainability strategy is to become smarter and more efficient in how we address energy," said Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan. "We are thrilled to be a beneficiary of this bold initiative and we commend Governor Cuomo for his focus on helping New York's municipalities in saving energy and lowering costs and we look forward to working with the Power Authority to develop and implement these master plans."
The master plan for Albany will focus on improving energy efficiency in four principal areas: energy planning and coordination, including review of the city’s energy purchases; the energy delivery infrastructure; transportation, including review of the city’s transportation fleet and transit centers; and energy efficiency in buildings. The plan will also focus on the revitalization of Albany’s urban center to attract new businesses and residents, using such measures as the repurposing of old buildings and the development of new green infrastructure, as well as the adaptive reuse of brownfields where possible.
The individual master plans for Albany and the other four cities are expected to be completed by the fall with implementation of the recommendations to follow. Public and stakeholder engagement will occur throughout the process. Questions, comments, and suggestions can be submitted through NYPA’s Five Cities Energy Master Plans webpage.
“The development of energy master plans through this partnership with the Power Authority will provide an exciting opportunity to bolster the ongoing revitalization and competitiveness of these five great cities. By improving energy efficiency and developing green, resilient neighborhoods, this initiative will produce cost savings, drive local job growth, enhance sustainability and improve quality-of-life,” said Donna De Costanzo, senior attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council. “We applaud Governor Cuomo and NYPA for this innovative initiative, which will not only result in tremendous benefits here in New York, but can serve as a model for other cities around the country.”
“The development of these five municipal energy master plans is a critical step forward to reducing energy consumption and advancing energy sustainability,” said John B. Rhodes, President and CEO, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. "This work, along with Governor Cuomo's Build Smart NY initiative, is a great example of how the Governor's clean energy agenda can create energy and cost savings and improve communities through partnerships with local governments."
About NYPA:
The New York Power Authority has been designated as the lead entity via Executive Order 88 by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to form a central management and implementation plan to carry out his Build Smart NY plan to reduce energy use by state facilities by 20 percent by 2020. â NYPA uses no tax money or state credit. It finances its operations through the sale of bonds and revenues earned in large part through sales of electricity. â NYPA is the nation's largest state public power organization, through the operation of its 16 generating facilities in various parts of New York State, participation in a unique public/private partnership to contract for power from a clean generating plant in Queens, and its operation of more than 1,400 circuit-miles of transmission lines. â 70 percent of the electricity NYPA produces is clean renewable hydropower. Its lower-cost power production and electricity purchases support hundreds of thousands of jobs throughout the state.â For more information visit www.nypa.gov or follow us on Twitter @NYPAenergy, Facebook, Instagram, Wordpress, and LinkedIn.
