Background
The Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller Empire State Plaza (“the Plaza”) is a modernist architectural landmark, designed in the 1960s and completed in 1978. Covering approximately 98 acres, the multi-building complex is comprised of approximately 12 million square feet of commercial and office space, where government, culture, and community converge in the heart of Albany, the State’s capital. Seven high-rise office buildings housing thousands of workers are connected at the basement level by the Concourse, which stretches for approximately a quarter of a mile underground and contains public space, restaurants, shops. It also connects to the State Capitol, the Plaza’s Convention Center, and the New York State Museum, Library, and Archives.
The Office of General Services (OGS) has been maintaining and modernizing the infrastructure of the Plaza since its first building was completed several decades ago. In the past ten years, OGS has worked with the New York Power Authority (NYPA) to implement 24 energy-efficiency projects, with a value of nearly $69 million, for OGS facilities across the State. These projects are saving the agency almost $3.4 million annually and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by more than 9,000 metric tons.
Energy efficiency work to date at the Plaza has included the electrification of one of the Plaza’s steam-driven chillers and the installation of energy-efficient LED indoor and outdoor lighting systems. OGS is currently replacing its two emergency generators at the Sheridan Avenue Steam Plant with four efficient, low-emission, and low-noise units. These investments reduce the emissions associated with operating the Plaza.
Decarbonization
The Plaza’s heating and cooling system was designed decades ago to run on steam. Over the course of its more than 110-year history, the Sheridan Avenue Steam Plant (SASP) has burned coal, oil, and even garbage. Today, it runs in part on natural gas to generate steam to power the Plaza’s steam-driven chillers and heat its closed-loop heating system. Redesigning and upgrading this system will require significant long-term investment and coordination across sectors and governing bodies. OGS and New York State are committed to further reducing local emissions in this disadvantaged community.
As a starting point, OGS and NYPA have worked collaboratively to develop the Empire State Plaza Energy Infrastructure Master Plan, outlining a phased approach to reduce the state and local environmental impacts of the Plaza’s operations. This plan supports Governor Kathy Hochul’s bold decarbonization goals, and she has invested $100 million to fully fund the energy conversion costs associated with the first phase of decarbonization.
The successful implementation of decarbonization plans for the Plaza must be paired with strategies to prioritize deferred maintenance projects and replace building systems that support the use of carbon-free energy sources. With many of the building systems already at the end of their useful life and in need of replacement, the decarbonization of the Empire State Plaza and completion of long-overdue building rehabilitation work will increase operational efficiencies and lead to lower costs to the State in the long run.
