Project Overview
The Motto by Hilton Philadelphia Rittenhouse Square is a 252-room hotel located at 29–31 South 19th Street in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse neighborhood. Completed in December 2019, the hotel initially opened as the POD Philly before temporarily closing due to COVID-19 restrictions. It reopened in spring 2021 as the Motto by Hilton Philadelphia Rittenhouse Square.
PEA, Nuveen Green Capital, and South 19th Street LP closed in November 2022 on $8.1 million in C-PACE financing for energy efficiency and water conservation measures installed during construction. The retroactive C-PACE financing helped the property owners fund eligible improvements installed during construction and recapitalize amid the pandemic’s disruption to the hospitality industry.
$8 million
$34,000
Annual energy savings
83 Mt
Annual avoided carbon emissions
The Challenges
The Motto by Hilton completed construction just months before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the hospitality industry. As the owners navigated financial challenges facing the hospitality sector, they needed to refinance maturing construction debt while preserving the value of energy efficiency and water conservation investments already installed in the building.
In response to the extraordinary circumstances created by the pandemic, Philadelphia temporarily extended the period for retroactive financing to up to 30 months, enabling the project to access C-PACE financing for previously installed improvements.
The Solution
On February 11, 2022, PEA, Nuveen Green Capital, and South 19th Street LP closed on $8,123,443 in retroactive C-PACE financing. Covered measures included high-efficiency elevator systems, building glazing, and building envelope improvements.
Over the 28-year financing term, these improvements are expected to reduce the building’s lifetime carbon footprint by 1,934 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. The project demonstrates how C-PACE financing can support efficient building infrastructure while providing commercial property owners with greater flexibility to navigate complex financing needs, including during periods of economic uncertainty.