NYC’s largest rooftop solar installation will top the Javits Center

The Jacob K. Javits Center is on its way to getting a whole lot greener: Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced today that the convention center on Manhattan’s far west side will be topped with the single largest installation of rooftop solar panels in New York City.

This piece of green infrastructure, to be designed and installed by Siemens, will produce 1.4 megawatts of solar energy, a number that is “estimated to offset more than 1.3 million pounds of carbon emissions each year,” according to Cuomo’s office.

Prior to this, the largest rooftop solar installation in New York City was located at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, which installed more than 3,000 solar panels on the roof of Building 293. The Javits Center project, in comparison, will have more than 4,000 solar panels. (The largest solar farm in the city is actually located on Staten Island—it has 9,000 panels across 10 acres.)

According to Cuomo’s office, the panels will not affect the design of the Javits Center’s nearly seven-acre green roof, itself a notable piece of eco-friendly infrastructure that can absorb stormwater, and also houses bees and birds. They’ll be installed over the HVAC systems on the roof, and another solar array will be built on 11th Avenue.

The Javits Center is in the midst of a larger $1.5 billion expansion, which kicked off in 2017, that will bring 90,000 square feet of permanent exhibit space, 27 new loading docks, a green roof terrace and pavilion, 45,000 square feet of new meeting room spaces, and a 55,000-square-foot ballroom to the existing convention center.