Build Ready Site Prospecting Services

LaBella Associates is assisting the New York Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) with identifying and selecting potential sites for large-scale renewable energy installations as part of the agency’s Build-Ready program. The Build-Ready program will help advance New York State’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), which has a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by increasing the share of electricity generated by renewable energy generation to 70 percent statewide.

Our multi-disciplinary team of planners, GIS professionals, environmental specialists, and engineers are implementing a data-driven approach, leveraging Geographic Information System (GIS) scripts that screen thousands of sites across 55 upstate New York counties based on a set of criteria that includes environmental constraints, program objectives, and minimum size thresholds. We are also conducting a secondary, more detailed, screening process complemented by a hands-on approach to assess the feasibility of renewable energy generation at the site including an evaluation of electrical capacity and community support. The process generates priority sites that are feasible for large-scale renewable development and meet program objectives that focus on developing projects on brownfield and underutilized sites in disadvantaged communities.

Our team is also be responsible for stakeholder engagement to gauge the level of acceptance of renewable energy within the community where priority sites are located. As part of this effort, LaBella supports the discussions related to community benefits (including payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT)), documents stakeholder feedback, coordinates publicity materials, and assists and manages open houses and public meetings