LSA Family Health Service
Transforming a community facility through an integrated heat-recovery retrofit, awarded $2 million for implementation through NYSERDA’s Heat Recovery Program.
The challenge
LSA Family Health Service is a five-story, 20,000-square-foot facility providing healthcare, family support and community services in East Harlem. Its existing cooling infrastructure was no longer meeting the building’s operational needs, while heating, cooling and ventilation operated as separate systems without heat recovery. The building was therefore rejecting substantial heat through cooling while continuing to rely on natural gas for space heating. As an active community facility, LSA needed a solution that could improve comfort and system performance while minimizing disruption to its day-to-day services. The project also required a clear pathway from the initial study through funding, detailed design and implementation.
The system approach
URBS completed the initial heat-recovery study in 2024 and developed an integrated system concept centered on a central air-source heat pump providing both hot and chilled water. When heating and cooling are required simultaneously, the system captures heat from one part of the building and reuses it elsewhere. The concept also includes exhaust-air heat recovery and prefabricated rooftop equipment modules to simplify installation and reduce disruption. A central building-management system coordinates heating, cooling and ventilation to improve comfort and support more responsive energy management. URBS supported the successful application for a $2 million NYSERDA implementation award and is now working with the project team to advance the retrofit through detailed design toward construction.