Blackstone and Ivanhoé Cambridge are planning to triple Manhattan’s capacity to generate solar power by installing panels across 22 acres of rooftops at their residential complex StuyTown.
The private equity company and the real estate subsidiary of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) said it will be the largest private multi-family residential rooftop solar project in the US.
StuyTown is the largest rental apartment complex in the US, with more than 11,200 multifamily units in 56 buildings across 80 acres in Manhattan’s East Village. It houses more than 27,000 New Yorkers, represents 1.7% of Manhattan’s population.
The project will be run by StuyTown Property Services, the property management company of StuyTown and neighbouring Peter Cooper Village.
New York City-based renewable energy developer Onyx Renewable Partners is project developer for the installation, which is expected to begin this winter and reach completion in 2019.
The installation will consist of 9,671 high-efficiency solar panels and will generate enough energy to power over 1,000 New York City apartments annually. The project is expected to offset approximately 63,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions, comparable to removing 12,000 cars from the road for a year.
“We are incredibly proud of the long-term partnership we are building with the StuyTown community,” said Nadeem Meghji, head of real estate Americas at Blackstone.
“In 2015 we made a commitment to preserve StuyTown’s unique heritage and be responsible stewards of its future. This innovative solar project is one of many initiatives we designed and implemented to make the community more sustainable and environmentally friendly.”
Daniel Fournier, chairman and CEO of Ivanhoé Cambridge, said: “Working to make communities more sustainable underpins many of our business decisions.”
