Roof space can be a lovely amenity in a co-op or condo, but it can also be used for solar to reduce your building’s carbon emissions. Tina Larsson, co-founder and CEO of the Folson Group, a business consultancy for co-op and condo boards, shares how an Upper East Side co-op in Manhattan managed to do both by making every square foot count. Tina Larsson is interviewed by Bill Morris for Habitat Magazine.
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[00:00:38] Bill Morris: Welcome to Problem Solved, Habitat's ongoing conversation about challenges that boards have faced — and how they've met them with the help of their professionals — in co-op and condo buildings across the city. I'm Bill Morris. My guest today is Tina Larsson, co-founder and owner of the Folson Group. Welcome, Tina.
The Climate Mobilization Act is sort of a dark cloud hanging over a lot of co-op and condo boards. They're worried about how they're going to cut their building’s carbon emissions. Do you have any case studies you could tell us about where a co-op or a condo board came to you with this problem and how you attacked it?
[00:01:12] Tina Larsson: Yes. We have this very progressive board, an Upper East Side high-rise building, where the board wanted to reduce their carbon emissions and do the right thing for their building and their residents. They would have been faced with fines in 2024, but they wanted to develop the roof, so we did. We did it in a very cost-efficient way because we rolled it into their Local Law 11 or their FISP repairs, so they would have scaffolding up that was already budgeted for. We replaced the roof, installed a green garden and added solar panels.
[00:01:58] Bill Morris: You were able to piggyback the roof job with the facade work that was mandated by Facade Inspection and Safety Program, and you attacked the roof while that scaffolding was up. How did you come to the solution of the green roof and the solar panels?
[00:02:12] Tina Larsson: This board specifically wanted to reduce their carbon output. That was their end goal. The roof wasn't in bad shape, but it was no longer under warranty. We came up with a solution of increasing amenity space, making it more useful for the owners. There's no reason not to use rooftops. There are over a million rooftops in New York City and a few years ago less than 1,000 of those were actually being used. It's valuable space. Now the building has its roof garden, and there are many sitting areas. And the solar panels offset 25% of the electricity used for the common areas.
[00:03:05] Bill Morris: Between the green roof and the solar panels, you said that the board was facing fines in 2024, and I assume also in 2030. Did these improvements eliminate their looming fines under the Climate Mobilization Act?
[00:03:19] Tina Larsson: Yes, they will not be fined in 2024. We're still working on projects for the building to eliminate the fines in 2030. They have a small fine in 2030 as it looks right now.
[00:03:31] Bill Morris: So the board is in pretty good shape because they took the long view and looked ahead. What advice would you give to other co-op and condo boards who are in the same boat?
[00:03:39] Tina Larsson: There's no better time to start than now. There are so many different solutions to meeting carbon reduction. But there's such a huge cost to roll out one alternative after the next until you meet the ultimate goal of not being fined in 2030. You really need to start now.