About 80 percent of New York City's greenhouse gas emissions come from its building stock, so the city's goal to cut emissions 80 percent by 2050 will hinge on aggressive retrofitting requirements in addition to new green building standards.
David Giambusso and Brendan Cheney explore the status of OneNYC—the city of New York's plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050. OneNYC, championed by Mayor Bill de Blasio, includes one particularly challenging component: cutting emissions from buildings 80 percent by 2050.
The article discusses the work that's been accomplished toward realizing a path to that target:
Since introducing the 'One City: Built to Last' policy paper in September 2014, a working group of energy, real estate and environmental experts has been meeting to come up with a series of recommendations on how to reduce building emissions. Despite de Blasio’s threat to mandate energy retrofits, it does not appear that will happen any time soon.
According to Giambusso and Cheney's sources, the city "will have to make more dramatic changes to its existing building stock to make it more energy efficient" by 2025 if it wishes to reach its target. Included among the possibilities would be "Passive House" requirements for new construction. A much larger challenges, according to the case presented in the article, would be covering the cost of retrofitting existing buildings.
The article includes more discussion about the de Blasio Administration's progress on the other components of OneNYC.
FULL STORY: De Blasio’s green agenda making slow but steady progress

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie