New York City's buildings are responsible for the majority of the city's greenhouse gas emissions, and efforts to force property owners to decrease that output have fallen flat. Last fall, Mayor Bill de Blasio proposed rigorous new standards for buildings and steep fines if they were not reached. But that proposal failed to gain support in the City Council, and ran into resistance from the Real Estate Board of New York.

Now, the tide seems to be turning in favor of compromise. A broad coalition of environmental groups and real estate developers are backing a framework from the Urban Green Council that calls for large city buildings to decrease energy usage by 20 percent between the years 2020 and 2030. 

"We have a program here that will reduce building energy use. It will reduce air pollution. It has support for owners," said Urban Green Council executive director Russell Unger, who added the report is significant because it was developed by a wide range of stakeholders.

"And that's a winning formula," said Unger. 

Unger's council solicited input from AIA New York, Environmental Defense Fund, New York Communities for Change, the Real Estate Board of New York, and the Rent Stabilization Association.

City Council Member Costa Constantinides, who represents northwestern Queens, also supports the proposals. The chair of the Committee on Environmental Protection, he said he hopes to introduce congruent legislation this fall.

The push to reduce building emission and energy usage comes while New York City is striving to reduce green house gas emissions by 80 percent by the year 2050. The Urban Green Council report estimates that 67 percent of the city's emissions come from buildings. Large buildings in particular are responsible for about 30 percent of the output. 

"I'm proud to stand with this coalition," Constantinides said at a press conference Monday, "to put together this policy framework to help us walk that path to 80 by 50."

As it stands, the report proposes to distinguish buildings by type, requiring them to reduce energy usage proportionally rather than uniformly. It would also offer government support and financing for some building owners to meet new requirements. 

The Mayor's Office of Sustainability has also indicated its openness to the report's proposals, and encouraged the City Council to pass legislation that would make increased financing available for business owners.

"We have a unique chance to address this problem once and for all," said Mark Chambers, director of the Office of Sustainability. "But we have to get it right, and we have to be bold right now."