NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Blackstone (NYSE:BX), through funds it manages on behalf of its real estate investors, and Ivanhoé Cambridge, a real estate subsidiary of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), today announced plans to implement the largest private multi-family residential rooftop solar project in the United States. The project will be run by StuyTown Property Services (SPS), the property management company of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village.
This 3.8 Megawatt (DC) solar energy system will span across the property’s 22 acres of rooftops. Once completed, StuyTown will have tripled Manhattan’s capacity to generate solar power. NYC-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.”
StuyTown is the first multifamily building in NYC to have received an ENERGY STAR certification, which it has won three years in a row for its sophisticated energy management technologies. Other sustainable initiatives at the property have included the installation of LED lighting, high efficiency hot water heat exchangers, elevator shaft louvers to minimize heat loss and domestic water flow control valves, as well as incorporating the use of a centralized building management system to control steam heating distribution and manage all of its sustainable initiatives. The community has been particularly active and enthusiastic in supporting StuyTown’s compost waste pickup, averaging just over 10,000 pounds of organic material collected weekly – representing 17 percent of all residential compost waste collected in Manhattan. StuyTown has already reduced on-site greenhouse gas emissions by 10 percent since 2007, and has now expanded into the solar sphere as part of its larger commitment to environmental sustainability.
“Working to make communities more sustainable underpins many of our business decisions. We are especially proud of this initiative and congratulate our partners Blackstone and the team at SPS. Stuyvesant Town Peter Cooper Village is a very special place and continues to be a leader in New York City,” said Daniel Fournier, Chairman and CEO, Ivanhoé Cambridge.
StuyTown is the largest rental apartment complex in the U.S., with 11,200+ multifamily units in 56 buildings across 80 acres in Manhattan’s East Village. It houses more than 27,000 New Yorkers and represents 1.7 percent of Manhattan’s population.
“When we acquired StuyTown in late 2015, we made sure to solicit feedback from the residents. We quickly learned of the strong connection with the community’s green space and the residents’ commitment to the environment,” said Rick Hayduk, CEO of StuyTown Property Services. “This solar project is yet another initiative executed by StuyTown’s ownership to reduce overall GHG emissions for the betterment of our city.”
To learn more about this project, visit: https://www.stuytown.com/solar.
About Blackstone
Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our asset management businesses, with over $385 billion in assets under management, include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.
About Ivanhoé Cambridge
Ivanhoé Cambridge, a global real estate industry leader, invests in high-quality properties and real estate companies in select cities around the world. It does so prudently, with a long-term view to generate optimal, risk-adjusted returns. Founded in Quebec in 1953, Ivanhoé Cambridge has built a vertically integrated business across Canada. Internationally, the Company invests alongside key partners and major real estate funds that are leaders in their respective markets. Through subsidiaries and partnerships, Ivanhoé Cambridge holds interests in nearly 800 buildings, primarily in the residential, office, retail and logistics real estate sectors. Ivanhoé Cambridge held approximately C$56 billion in assets as at December 31, 2016. The Company is a real estate subsidiary of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (cdpq.com), one of Canada's leading institutional fund managers. For more information: ivanhoecambridge.com.
