Hartford Business Journal

HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | DECEMBER 5, 2022 11 Developer Bruce Becker sits among solar panels on the top of his "platinum" LEED-certified apartment building at 777 Main St. in Hartford. HBJ PHOTO | MICHAEL PUFFER Going Green More apartment developments could see green technology with new Inflation Reduction Act incentives By Michael Puffer mpuffer@hartfordbusiness.com A fuel cell beside the apart- ment tower at 777 Main St. in downtown Hartford and solar panels on the roof 26 stories above provide about two-thirds of the 285-unit building's power needs, saving its owner about $750,000 yearly. Heating and cooling are handled by hundreds of high-efficiency heat pumps that draw heat from ambient air inside during cooler months and push warmth out of the building for summertime cooling. The property has 16 electric vehicle charging stations. Countertops and carpets are recycled. Faucets and toilets are low flow. Appliances are energy-star rated. Acclaimed architect and builder Bruce Becker packed a lot of green technology into his redevelopment of the former Bank of America building. Completed in 2015, the project earned a "LEED platinum" rating, the highest possible for environmentally friendly construction. Now, with the passage of the $739 billion U.S. Inflation Reduc- tion Act in August, Becker said he is strongly contemplating packing even more green technology into his award-winning building. Nearly half of the Inflation Reduc- tion Act's funding will be used to incentivize green technology in buildings and vehicles in a bid to combat climate change. Much of this is targeted at individual households, but there is also plenty in there for builders. "I'm giving serious consideration to adding a significant amount of battery storage," Becker said in a recent interview. "I have thought about it, and it didn't pencil out last year. Now, with this, it probably will." Becker said he could spend $500,000 to $2 million on high-ca- pacity batteries that can reduce the need to tap the electric grid during times of peak cost or — in the case of buildings equipped with solar panels — when the sun isn't shining. "The majority of our electric bill is for demand charges, and this can be significantly reduced or eliminated depending on how much battery storage is available," Becker said. "Battery storage would benefit our own building, as well as the overall grid and all ratepayers by reducing the need for expensive peaking generation, which also tends to create the most carbon pollution." New incentives may also help cover the cost of planned upgrades to electric vehicle chargers on-site at 777 Main, Becker said. "We are still studying the IRA incen- tives, which take effect in 2023, and will be exploring technologies in addi- tion to battery storage and program- mable microgrid controls," Becker said. "There is a large basement at 777 Main as well as a second-floor large former cafeteria and commer- cial kitchen that we hope to find new uses for. If we build out the spaces with energy efficient systems, the IRA should help." Beefed-up incentives The Inflation Reduction Act leans heavily on tax credits. It increased the minimum renewable energy invest- ment tax credit from 26% to 30%. It also qualifies high-capacity batteries for tax credits, eliminating a prior requirement that forced batteries to be paired with solar. The tax credits can rise as high as 70% for projects that meet several additional criteria, such as being located in a brownfield or census tract where fossil fuels are a significant part of the economy, or using green technology in affordable housing. "The Inflation Reduction Act is filled with incentives and opportunities to make heat pumps and electri- fication of heating and cooling more attractive to developers," said Mackey Dykes, vice president of financing programs at the Connecticut Green Bank. Dykes said rules and regulations governing incentives under the new law are still being developed by the U.S. Treasury Department, Depart- ment of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency. Connecticut has long offered green technology incentives, with a steady progression in the number of takers. The Connecticut Green Bank's primary tools include "Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy" (C-PACE) loans, which can be used for virtually any energy upgrade embedded in a building, whether it is a more efficient boiler or new solar array. These loans are repaid through a special assessment voluntarily tacked on to property tax bills in participating towns. Since its 2013 launch, Connecti- cut's C-PACE loan program has helped finance 363 projects worth $217.8 million. The program provided $1 million in loans toward the cost of renewable power at 777 Main. "It's using a centuries-old tool — a Mackey Dykes

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