The Red Hook Stores was originally built as a 400,000 SF granary on the New York waterfront before the civil war. By the 1980’s most shipping left New York for larger facilities in New Jersey, and then the empty facility fell into disrepair.
After four years of intensive renovation, the 150 year old building was reborn as a seven-story mixed-use complex. The two bottom floors are home to New York’s Fairway market. The two floors above are offices and the remaining floors are high-end residences.
Energy Concepts worked closely with the developer, architect and main commercial tenant to design the optimal system for the building. The result is a state of the art HVAC system centered around an ultra-efficient 1MW cogeneration plant.The engineering scope included a new electrical service, an 8,000 Btu boiler plant, and XX 300 ton absorption chillers. The CHP generators, boilers and absorbers are housed in an unobtrusive remote structure for easy maintenance.The innovation extended to the financial aspect of the project as well. The integrated CHP/HVAC plant has been structured and is operated as a standalone business entity. Its electricity, heating and cooling output is metered and sold to the tenants, generating significant cash flow.
The Red Hook Stores serve notice that there’s no conflict between enterprise and the environment. When done with creativity and innovation, environmentally responsible development yields benefits for the bottom line and the planet.