In a first-of-its-kind initiative in the U.S., the city of Ithaca, N.Y., voted to electrify and decarbonize all buildings within the community—not just municipal buildings.
Ithaca, a community of about 30,000 people, contains about 6,000 homes and buildings. The decarbonization plan would involve regulations on things like how a building is heated and the types of appliances it uses to eliminate consumption of fossil fuels.
This legislation is part of the broader “Green New Deal” that the city approved in 2019. That measure calls for city government to meet all its electricity needs with renewable energy by 2025 and reduce its vehicle emissions by half. It also set an ambitious goal of being a carbon-neutral city by the end of the decade.
Building improvements could include swapping natural gas and propane cooking stoves with electric induction cooktops and installing solar panels. Cornell University is working on modeling to help inform what buildings to address first. The program is likely to unfold in two phases—the first covering 1,600 buildings, and then another 4,400 in a second wave.
Related Stories
| Aug 9, 2012
St. Paul cannot adopt overly restrictive egress windows policy, court rules
The Minnesota state Court of Appeals rejected St. Paul's attempt to adopt a policy on egress windows that was stricter than state law.
| Aug 9, 2012
Fire chief questions building code after St. Louis apartment building fire
A blaze that destroyed a 197-unit apartment building in St. Louis, Mo., displacing 250 residents, led the city’s fire chief to question the materials used in the construction of the four-story building.
| Aug 9, 2012
Ramps have strict criteria for ADA compliance
It is important for businesses to understand that an existing ramp at a building entrance may not mean that barrier removal obligations under the Americans with Disabilities Act have been met.
| Aug 9, 2012
ClickSafety, AGC provide online training program for construction professionals
Construction professionals will be able to take a wide range of mandatory and optional safety training programs online through a new collaboration between the Associated General Contractors of America and ClickSafety.
| Aug 9, 2012
Tornado-ravaged Greensburg, Kansas’s new green buildings save $200K a year
The town of Greensburg, Kan., virtually destroyed by a tornado in 2007, decided to rebuild 13 public buildings according to green standards.
| Aug 2, 2012
FBI investigates Turner, Tishman, Skanska, and Plaza Construction for billing practices on public projects in New York
After charges filed against Bovis Lend Lease in April led to an admission of guilt and $56 million in fines for overbilling clients, federal prosecutors are investigating the billing practices of four more New York City construction firms, according to reports.
| Aug 2, 2012
Court ruling may lead to more destructive testing on unfinished Harmon Tower in Las Vegas
A Clark County, Nevada district court judge ruled that the unfinished Harmon Hotel at CityCenter, operated and half-owned by MGM Resorts, could not use extrapolation when requesting damages at a possible trial.
| Aug 2, 2012
NIBS council recommends private and public measures to improve building sustainability
A new report by the National Institute of Building Sciences Consultative Council highlights four several areas that need focus to improve sustainability in buildings and infrastructure.
| Aug 2, 2012
Greenbuild summit will focus on greening affordable housing
A two-day summit focused on green building in the affordable housing market will be held Nov. 13 - 14, 2012 in San Francisco, Calif. at the Greenbuild International Conference & Expo.
| Aug 2, 2012
More than 250 downtown El Paso, Texas buildings don’t meet safety codes, says city’s fire department
A total of 726 buildings were inspected for unsafe conditions, and 266 did not meet safety codes, while 112 buildings were found to be vacant and needed further inspection.
