City Trying to Get Commercial Buildings to Chill Out

Offices, department stores, city buildings and restaurants may be getting a little chillier soon with the Health Department's proposal to lower the minimum required temperature from 68 degrees to 65. Of course, tenants of those buildings would have to agree to any such change—many properties set the minimum temperature at 70 in their leases. The city agency is trying to sell the drop as not only friendly to the environment, but a way to save money. That might not be enough, with the president of the Real Estate Board of New York telling the News, "What is needed is more energy-efficient retrofitting - more efficient windows, for example, so heat doesn't escape." With the climb towards warm weather underway (knock on wood), might we see another round of battling between the city and businesses who insist on blowing cool air out their front doors on hot summer days?

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By Billy Parker in News on March 28, 2009 11:47 AM

Comments [rss]

S_R

Try working at 810 7th Avenue. The building turns off the heat between 5:30 and 6pm, and if you work later than that, you will be working in your coat. The thermometer in my office has read as low as 53 degrees this winter.

Spirit of 76

I used to work in an office in an old building where most of the radiators had faulty valves and were stuck on full blast all winter. Many of the tenants, including us, complained about having to run their air conditioners or, if they were lucky and had operable windows, just cracked them in the wintertime.

There should be more accountability. Depending on the kind of space you have, they should allow you a certain limit for kilowatt-hours and/or therms per square foot per month. Then if you go over it, the rates should surge enormously. That would be incentive to stay under the limit.

mocanlagunas

This is like my apt. All winter we have to have the windows open because of the heat... BUT on my last apt it was the other way around, so I prefer that than to freeze my butt off... The amount of energy wasted in this country is unbelievable.

EricRoberts

My office building in midtown is always too cold and they run the A/C year-round. We also leave plasma televisions on all night, leave the lights on, don't recycle bottles and cans, etc. I believe in Japan the government mandated that businessmen dress in short sleeves so offices didn't use so much A/C.

Jen Chung

Well, isn't the retrofitting buildings with energy efficient materials part of Obama's plan, to help grow green industries?

Trilby16

Overheated department stores have always irked me. You, the customer, go in there wearing a coat. In no time, you are sweating. Let the help dress warmer!

As for office buildings, the current rule is "Whatever the season, you will be uncomfortable." Too cold in summer, too hot in winter.

My only problem is, like, in the last energy crisis (yes, I am that old!) you would have public spaces turning down AC so it was like 80 degrees inside, but no fans. People, if it's going to be 80, you need to move the air!

nicemarmot

Or they could do something REALLY crazy and turn off their fucking lights at night! I live in Midtown and almost all of the office buildings have half their lights on at 4am. That includes the government buildings - in fact they're the worst culprits. It pissed me off before the depression and now it's just ridiculous. It only takes a few seconds for the last person out of the office to turn off the lights!