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Ithaca staff and preservation planner weigh how new energy code would affect historic buildings
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Summary
City staff and the historic preservation planner told commissioners most historic buildings can be upgraded for energy efficiency without altering character‑defining features; staff proposed exploring incentives (tax credits, municipal investment fund, case studies) rather than a broad exemption and flagged a pause in the state's All Electric Buildings Act implementation.
City staff opened a multihour discussion of how a forthcoming state energy code and the All Electric Buildings Act intersect with locally designated historic properties, and said the city will delay adoption of a local net‑zero supplement until July 1, 2026 or until staff propose an alternative.
The city's historic preservation planner (the planner was introduced in the meeting context and spoke in detail about preservation practice) argued historic properties can be made energy efficient while retaining character. "Historic properties can be energy efficient, and there are incentives available to help pay for those improvements," the planner said, citing insulation, attic work, careful placement of air‑source heat pump equipment, and use of storm windows as examples that preserve exterior and interior features.
The planner gave inventory figures to frame the issue: about 6,500 parcels in the city, roughly 650 locally designated historic buildings (about 7% of land area), and up to roughly 10% of city properties when National Register listings are included. Most designated properties are residential.
Commissioners pressed on how the code would treat "character‑defining features" and whether the Landmarks Commission (ILPC) or staff would adjudicate exemptions; staff said the existing Landmarks review process already handles many exterior changes and that about 95% of heat‑pump projects are reviewed at the staff level. Staff recommended design‑professional documentation when a property claims an exemption based on impacts to character‑defining features.
Staff and the planner reviewed incentives: a New York homeowner historic rehabilitation tax credit (described in the meeting as roughly 20% of rehabilitation costs), and federal/state credits for commercial substantial rehabilitation projects (figures and thresholds were discussed in the meeting). Commissioners noted that tax credits require upfront capital and said gap financing would help homeowners take advantage of credits; staff suggested the municipal investment fund and case studies as potential ways to stack incentives.
No blanket exemption was adopted; commissioners directed staff to continue exploring incentives, pilot case studies and municipal investment options, and to return with more data and options for how the commission or city could support historic property owners while pursuing energy code goals.
