The Hot Seat: Ellen Honigstock

Welcome to the Hot Seat, where we interview folks involved in real estate, architecture, development and the like. Introducing Ellen Honigstock, one of the founders of Solarize Brooklyn. Solarize Brooklyn is a nonprofit focused on bringing solar power into Kensington, Windsor Terrace, Flatbush and surrounding neighborhoods.
Brownstoner: What neighborhood do you live in, and how did you end up there?
Ellen Honigstock: I live with my family on the border of Kensington and Windsor Terrace. I met my husband in July of 2000 on the day after he closed on his Ocean Parkway apartment, and after we got married, I moved in. One day when my now 9-year-old was a baby, we were out walking him around the neighborhood on the other side of the highway and we passed a great but fairly run-down house for sale next to a beautiful community garden on East 4th Street. We weren’t even looking to move at the time but we loved the location and as an architect, the multitude of problems the house had didn’t scare us.

BS: Can you talk about the beginnings of Solarize Brooklyn and how you got involved?
EH: On New Year’s Day, we decided this was going to be the year to add solar to our home! We had already weatherized our house and we wanted to take advantage of the incentives around solar before they started to disappear. I asked a neighbor to see if she wanted me to get her a price quote also and when she responded with an enthusiastic “yes,” I thought that perhaps more of our neighbors would be interested too so I posted the question to our local listserve and got 37 responses. After I picked my jaw up off the floor, I responded with a request to help put together a community purchasing program and very quickly, several knowledgeable and enthusiastic neighbors stepped up. We then met with Max Joel from Solar One, a nonprofit green energy, arts and education center, who quickly became our Trusted Advisor and helped us put together a request for proposal for solar PV (electric) and solar thermal (hot water) systems. Since then we have selected the providers and put together several educational sessions to tell community members about the program. We will have at least three more sessions before June 30, the close of the joining date. You can see locations and details here.

After the jump, how to get involved with the program, why Brooklyn is a good place for these initiatives, and what’s in the future for Solarize Brooklyn…
BS: What drew the organization to the Flatbush / Windsor Terrace area?
EH: Kensington and Windsor Terrace are dynamic neighborhoods with friendly, community-oriented people and there seemed to be so many folks with an environmental bent. Several years ago, a neighbor and I cofounded Sustainable Kensington Windsor Terrace. We organized a couple of neighborhood energy competitions, with the help of NYSERDA and Councilman Lander that were fun, educational and reduced the energy consumption of most of the participants. Solarize Brooklyn is open to residents of Kensington, Windsor Terrace, Flatbush and adjoining neighborhoods and will reach many, many more Brooklynites than those competitions did.

BS: What’s the process look like for participating in this program? And then what does your life look like once you’re using solar power?
EH: The process is simple. We hope that interested homeowners will attend a community educational session to learn more about the technologies and the program, but it’s not mandatory. Participants will then sign up for a free solar assessment to determine if their building is a good candidate for a solar PV and/or solar hot water system (there is no commitment for the homeowner when signing up for an assessment.) Once the homeowner has the solar proposal(s) in hand, they will have 30 days to sign a contract. The joining period closes June 30, so we estimate that by August, all assessments will be completed, all the interested homeowners will have committed, and we will know the total capacity of the Solarize program and what level of discount each participant will receive. As to how your life will change once you are using solar, the only difference will be MUCH lower electric or utility bills and access to a cool website that will show you how much solar energy you are producing and consuming at any given moment.

BS: Why is Brooklyn a good place for energy initiatives like this? Where is Brooklyn falling behind, in terms of energy conservation?
EH: Brooklyn is a great place for community solar because people are so connected here so it’s relatively easy to get the word out. As for energy conservation, it’s not that Brooklyn is falling behind – there’s not enough home weatherization or awareness about energy conservation anywhere in the U.S. New York City is a particularly tough place to install solar – we have additional code requirements, and a permit that takes two months to get in New York City could be obtained in 48 hours in Long Island. While the incentives here are great, it’s still confusing enough to prevent widespread uptake. One goal of Solarize Brooklyn is to simplify the process for as many Brooklynites as possible.

BS: What are the longterm goals for Solarize Brooklyn?
EH: Long term, we hope that the program will expand awareness of energy conservation and renewable energy in our communities. It would be great if it could spur solarize programs in other neighborhoods but it would be even better if energy audits, weatherization and solar energy became the norm.

BS: Finally, your favorites: favorite Brooklyn neighborhood, favorite example of energy conservation in Brooklyn, and your ideal Brooklyn location to set up solar power.
EH: Neighborhood: I consider Kensington/Windsor Terrace one neighborhood and I love it here. Conservation: At the Brooklyn New School, where my children go, the fourth graders are competing in the Eco-Schools USA Cool School Challenge. They audited their classroom’s energy usage for lighting and studied their solid waste and recycling efforts, including paper and water usage, and analyzed their transportation methods. The class also learned about “Energy Vampires,” devices such as computers, smart boards and printers that use energy even when they are turned off, so they are not only learning about energy conservation within the school’s walls, they are bringing that information home too. Ideal Brooklyn location to set up solar power: That’s an easy one: lots and lots of houses, co-ops and condos in Kensington, Windsor Terrace and Flatbush.