Community Shared Solar at NYCHA March 30, 2020 Chris White, Capital - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Community Shared Solar at NYCHA March 30, 2020 Chris White, Capital - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Community Shared Solar at NYCHA March 30, 2020 Chris White, Capital Projects Sustainability Programs About NYCHA NYCHA Houses 1 in 14 New Yorkers 2 About NYCHA NYCHAs Housing Stock is Aging 3 About NYCHA NextGeneration Sustainability


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Community Shared Solar at NYCHA

March 30, 2020 Chris White, Capital Projects Sustainability Programs

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About NYCHA NYCHA Houses 1 in 14 New Yorkers

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About NYCHA NYCHA’s Housing Stock is Aging

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About NYCHA NextGeneration Sustainability Agenda

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  • NYCHA’s commitment as a landlord

to create healthy and comfortable homes that will withstand the challenge of climate change

  • An invitation to residents and

surrounding communities to work with NYCHA to realize a shared long- term vision of equity, sustainability, and resiliency

  • Strategy S2: Raise revenue

through clean and distributed energy projects

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NYCHA’s 25 MW Solar Program Goals

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  • Host 25 MW of solar PV capacity by

2025 (HUD Renew300 commitment)

  • Generate revenue for NYCHA
  • Provide job training and green jobs

for NYCHA residents

  • Reduce energy costs for NYCHA

residents who pay their own utility bills, Section 8 tenants, and other low-income renters in NYC

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NYCHA’s 25 MW Solar Program Community Shared Solar (CSS)

  • All NYCHA solar systems are roof leases for Community Shared Solar
  • NYCHA gets its power from the New York Power Authority (NYPA),

which has low rates (making PPAs uneconomical) and has historically forbid NYCHA from subscribing to community solar

  • Community Shared Solar at NYCHA will:
  • Leverage an under-used asset (our roofs) to provide public benefit
  • Provide modest lease revenue at no cost to NYCHA
  • Expand solar access to low- and moderate-income New Yorkers,

especially those living in multifamily housing who could otherwise not access solar power

  • Nurture a nascent market

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Corner Store Bronx Non-Profit Smith Family

Community Shared Solar Enables many customers to buy solar power

Bronx Non- Profit Smith Family Corner Store

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Sustainable CUNY

  • Works on multiple city, state, and federal

initiatives to reduce “soft costs” of going solar

  • LiDAR analysis of NYCHA roofs
  • Continued help with publicity, evaluation,

workforce and consumer protection items ICF

  • Provided technical assistance under HUD’s

Renew300 program

  • Continued assistance via NYSERDA grants

NYCHA’s 25 MW Solar Program NYCHA Partners

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Commercial Solar Program

  • Large sites (campuses with individual roofs over 40 kW)
  • Commercial-scale developers
  • Goal is to maximize lease payments

Accelerating Community Empowered Shared Solar (ACCESSolar)

  • Smaller and more scattered sites
  • Focus on local developers working with CBOs/non-profits
  • Nominal lease payments may be OK

NYCHA’s 25 MW Solar Program Two halves: Commercial and ACCESSolar

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  • Both will help reach NYCHA’s 25 MW

goal

  • Both programs focus on roofs that

are new/not planned to be replaced in near future

  • Requirement to hire and train

NYCHA residents

  • Requirement to enroll low- and

moderate-income residents, including those NYCHA households that pay their own electric bills

NYCHA’s 25 MW Solar Program Commercial and ACCESSolar common goals

Photo credit: Bright Power

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  • Two proposers selected-

up to 6 MW of power on 90 roofs and 13 parking lots across 8 developments

  • $3.5 million in lease

payments over the next 20 years

  • First lease signed at

Queensbridge North and South in 2019- 2.0 MW across 27 buildings

NYCHA’s Commercial Solar Program 2017 Solar RFP

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  • Up to 28 jobs for NYCHA residents (mostly in installation, with a

couple in subscriber outreach) across both projects

  • Expect to subscribe 550-750 LMI households, with 10-20%

savings off ConEd rate

  • 17 NYCHA residents currently receiving solar installation training

as part of the Queensbridge project

  • First installations will go online this year- Queensbridge solar

will be the largest community solar array in New York City

NYCHA’s Commercial Solar Program Energy and Jobs for All

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  • Open online application

process held in late 2018

  • Included over 300 roofs

across 60+ developments

  • Teams required to include

local non-profit or community-based

  • rganizations
  • Shared Solar Gateway by

CUNY to help make connections

NYCHA’s ACCESSolar Program Building a New Model for Solar

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  • Five teams were selected to develop full proposals on up

to 6 MW worth of roofs

  • License agreement for site access in advance of Full

Proposals, including commitments and design details

  • This is a collaborative effort: knowledge-sharing and
  • utreach meetings coordinated by NYCHA and CUNY
  • Two proposals in so far, currently undergoing evaluation

and lease negotiation

NYCHA’s ACCESSolar Program Implementation

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  • #1 Challenge- Lease Negotiations
  • Public agencies have many restrictions on lease terms, both technical

and programmatic

  • Community solar is still very new here- trying to build a model that

works legally and financially

  • Hope to use the first couple leases as a model for other agencies
  • Small sites (but large for NYC!)- the goal is to spread solar and

save renters some $$$, not to get rich

  • Good news- some bureaucratic hurdles are being lifted
  • Consolidated billing
  • NYSERDA Multifamily Housing Adder now includes community solar

NYCHA’s 25 MW Solar Program Hurdles and Lessons Learned

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  • First systems (both Commercial and ACCESSolar) expected

to go online this year

  • Future rounds of solar to come as NYCHA continues to

replace its roofs- incorporate lessons learned

  • Work with internal NYCHA stakeholders to develop best

practices for solar on our roofs

  • Overcome legal hurdles
  • Not just NYCHA- build a model for community solar

across the city

NYCHA’s 25 MW Program 2020 and Beyond

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Thank you!

Christopher White Christopher.White2@nycha.nyc.gov

NYCHA Going Solar