Creating Jobs and Conserving Energy – Homewood Suites

Last fall, TRF financed a commercial real estate project that will not only create 589 new construction jobs and 34 permanent hospitality jobs, but consume 26.4% less energy than a typical new building.

Using New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC), TRF is financing a new hotel in West Philadelphia’s University City neighborhood. Part of Hilton’s Homewood Suites brand, the hotel will provide extended-stay accommodations for  visitors to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University and others. In addition to 136 guest suites, the 109,862 square foot commercial building will offer a pool, fitness center, dining facilities and a 40-person capacity meeting room. TRF provided $17.5 million of NMTC financing and the total project costs were $45.1 million.

TRF is also providing the hotel’s developer, Campus Apartments, with a $1.6 million energy loan through its Pennsylvania Green Energy Loan Fund (a TRF fund supported by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection and the U.S. Department of Energy) and EnergyWorks (a fund that TRF co-manages with the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy to the Metro Caucus, a partnership between Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties and the City of Philadelphia). To qualify for a TRF energy loan, a new building must show that it will consume at least 25% less energy than if built under the existing building energy code.

The energy measures in the new Homewood Suites building include air sealing and high insulation levels, energy-efficient windows, a high-performance water-loop heat pump HVAC system, digital energy controls, energy-efficient lighting, a green roof and low-flow plumbing fixtures. The building’s green roof will allow it to retain rainwater by lowering the amount of impermeable surface on the site and minimizing the building’s contribution to storm water flooding – a major environmental concern in Philadelphia.

As a result of these measures, the hotel expects to realize $24,500 in energy efficiency savings each year compared to code. The hotel’s operating budget will also be less susceptible to future price increases for natural gas and electricity.

TRF’s energy lending is available for energy retrofits in existing buildings, gut rehab of existing buildings and new construction. For more information, visit www.trfund.com/energyloans.