EXCERPT from GLOBEST.COM

Contained in the proposals announced by Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Wednesday are mandates that require older buildings to invest in necessary technology and infrastructure that would increase energy efficiency and reduce the city's carbon footprint. New York City's buildings are responsible for 80% of its carbon emissions. The investments could prove costly, but promise tremendous savings in power bills for thousands of properties.

In a release, Bloomberg says his plan "will significantly improve economic competitiveness, put thousands of New Yorkers to work in green jobs, and do more to shrink our own direct impact on global warming than any other actions imaginable." Speaking to the perilous economic times, Mike Fishman, president of the Service Employees International Union's Local 32BJ, the largest private sector union in New York, says in a statement that the initiative would "protect the environment, boost the real estate industry and get workers the training they need to get ahead."

Owners and industry groups agree that the city's initiative is bold, but worry that it could prove intrusive. There are worries that a "one size fits all" approach by government may not prove effective in a city of such wide diversity within its building stock. "In a city with buildings as complex and diverse as New York City, each building's situation is unique and the extent to which it can perform energy upgrades is best evaluated and acted upon by the owner and manager," says a statement from the Building Owners and Managers Association's New York chapter.

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EXCERPT FROM STORY AT globeSt

Apparently, the biggest point of contention in the Ravitch Plan has been a proposal to charge automobiles crossing the East and Harlem rivers to come into Manhattan. That proposal has met stiff opposition from a group of state Senators, primarily Karl Krueger of Brooklyn's district 27, Pedro Espada from the Bronx's district 33 and Rueben Diaz of the Bronx's district 32.

Even a plan that included lower bridge toll fees, part of a compromised version of the Ravitch Plan proposed by Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver was not acceptable to toll opponents. As New York Building Congress president Richard Anderson told GlobeSt.com in March, "it seems clear, the state senate is being driven by avoidance of Harlem River and East River tolls."

Interestingly, the number of residents who drive to work in the districts represented by opponents to the Ravitch Plan are tally almost 2-to-1 public transit users. In fact, according to RPA data, of the 100,529 residents who commute to work in Krueger's district, 44,534 drive to work while 55,995 take public transit.

Similarly, of the 82,015 commuters in Diaz's district, 22,936 drive daily while 50,906 take the subway and/or bus. In Espada's district, 77,284 commute daily. Of those, 54,348 take public transit while only 22,936 drive a car. Drivers did slightly outnumber transit takers among Brooklyn district 26 and Bronx district 32 residents who earn more than $100,000 per year.

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