When the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce awarded the Red Hook Stores its highest honor, it was the only project that won for both Design and Economic Impact. This project is on the vanguard of urban renewal, combining environmental responsibility, state-of-the-art engineering and innovative financing.

The Red Hook Stores was built as a 400,000 sq. ft. granary on the NY waterfront before the civil war. By the 1980's most shipping left NY city for larger facilities in NJ, and the empty structure fell into disrepair.

Today, after four years of intensive renovation, this 160 year old building is reborn as a mixed-use complex. The two bottom floors are home for New York's largest Fairway Market. The two floors above are offices, and the top three floors are high-end residences.

Energy Concepts worked closely with the developer, the architect and the main commercial tenant to design the optimal M.E.P. 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 300 ton absorption chillers. The CHP generators, boilers and chillers 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.