Hello everyone! Today I’m making note of some activity in the City Council and the Mayor’s office from this past year (that have nothing to do with term limits!), as well as a few City-authored, green building related reports. Rumblings of green legislation supporting the implementation of PlaNYC are omnipresent at the city these days. Three pieces of legislation so far include a measure to require disclosure of energy and water performance to renters or buyers, a “NYC Climate Protection Act”, and setting additional green building standards for City capital projects. (more…)

Today I’m looking at this past year’s notable green home related bills from the state legislature - all of which are financial incentive programs that New Yorkers should be aware of.  The legislature reconvenes in ‘09, and the possibility of a November transfer of power in the State Senate to Democratic control should be noted (Not as an endorsement of one political party over another, but rather as recognition that the only bills that pass in New York are sponsored by members of each house’s majority party).  A Democratic Legislature and Governor may ease the passage of more green legislation in ‘09. (more…)

Hello Everyone! My name is Adam Szlachetka. I’ll be blogging on regulatory and legislative issues that impact green building in New York City, interesting issues related to green home design in the City, and other related topics. Just to get started, there were a few notable items from this summer (more…)

Speakers are Ariella Maron and Laurie Kerr of the NYC Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability:

Unfortunately, Ariella Maron was not able to join us for this forum.

Ariella Maron is the Deputy Director of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability, the office responsible for the implementation of PlaNYC, the city’s long-term sustainability plan. Prior to this, she worked in the Energy Division of the New York City Economic Development Corporation where she specialized in energy efficiency and sustainability and as an urban planner in The Bronx for the New York City Department of City Planning and as an analyst at the energy, economic consulting firm PA Consulting Group (formerly PHB Hagler Bailly). She received her Master in City Planning from MIT where she concentrated on environmental policy and urban design and focused her thesis research on mainstreaming green building in NYC. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

Laurie Kerr is a Senior Policy Advisor for the New York City�s Office of Long Term Planning and Sustainability, where she has contributed to the development of the city�s greenhouse gas reduction plan and green building strategies. Her previous position was as the Chief of Sustainable Research for New York City�s Department of Design and Construction, the agency which pioneered green building practices in New York City government. She has over fifteen years experience practicing architecture, and her architectural criticism has appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Slate, and Architectural Record. Prior to receiving her M. Arch. from Harvard, Laurie earned degrees in engineering and physics.

This event is hosted and co-sponsored by Pratt Institute.

On November 18, 2004, Mayor Bloomberg formally designated the Mayor’s Task Force on Sustainability and charged it with coordinating and facilitating the incorporation on environmentally sustainable principles into the City government’s planning, operations, and policymaking and regulatory functions. On May 18, 2005, Dr. Robert Kulikowski and Ariella Rosenberg discussed the most recent steps the City has taken towards sustainability.

Location: Hafele Showroom, 25 E. 26th St. (Madison Park)

Please check back soon for notes on this forum.

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SPEAKER BIOS

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Robert R. Kulikowski is currently the Director of the New York City Office of Environmental Coordination where he forumulates environmental policy for the City, with particular emphasis on sustainability and brownfield redevelopment. In this position he also oversees the City’s environmental review process. He recieved a bachelor’s degree from the University of Rochester and a doctorate in biology from the University at Albany. Following a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Chicago, he worked as a research scientist for a number of years holding faculty appointments at several medical schools. Subsequently, he was head of New York City’s radiation protection program and also worked as consultant to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Most recently, Dr. Kulikowski served as the senior environmental policy advisor for the Manhattan Borough President.

Ariella Rosenberg is a Senior Project Manager in the Energy Division of the New York City Economic Development Corporation where she specializes in energy efficiency and sustainability. She chairs both the Inter-agency working group of the NYC Energy Policy Task Force and the Energy Management Working Group of the Mayor’s Task Force on Sustainability. Prior to joining EDC, she worked as an urban planner in The Bronx for the New York City Department of City Planning. She has also worked as an analyst at the energy, economic consulting firm PA Consulting Group (formerly PHB Hagler Bailly). She received her Masters in City Planning from MIT where she concentrated on environmental policy and urban design and focused her thesis research on mainstreaming green building in NYC. She is currently a staff member of the awesome non-profit, GreenHome NYC. Ms. Rosenberg received her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania.