The Borough President is thinking green to save some green.

Continuing an initiative he introduced in last year’s State of the Borough address, Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. will announce participants of a revolving loan program intended to upgrade buildings with more energy-efficient amenities as a way to keep maintenance costs down. In return, property owners will agreed to keep costs, and subsequently rents, down.

Chestnut Holdings, one of the largest property managers in the Bronx, was picked by Diaz as the first to take advantage of the “Green Development Fund.”  

In an excerpt of his speech shared ahead of his morning address, Diaz pointed out Chestnut Holdings’ large portfolio of units it takes care of across the borough.

“Chestnut Holdings, which manages more than 4,000 apartments in our borough, is identifying needed upgrades through an energy audit of their buildings,” wrote Diaz in his speech. “We will set an example for the preservation of environmentally-friendly affordable housing across the city.”

The Riverdale-based real estate company is expected to assess all of its units across the Bronx to determine what needs improvement.

The loan program, which stood at $2.5 million last year, can be a boon to the borough’s underserved and dilapidated buildings across the Bronx, where costs to replace worn out boilers or windows free of insulation are too exorbitant for property managers. This creates a recurring economic hardship for property owners who lose money for using antiquated equipment.

The problems could relate to why Chestnut Holdings had run into trouble with several building tenants over the years with some noted demonstrations critical of the family-run operation. In 2013, tenants from buildings managed by Chestnut Holdings protested at the home of the firm’s owner, Jonathan Weiner, only to meet a counter-protest from supporters praising Chestnut Holdings.

 In 2011, tenants at one building in Mt. Eden sued Chestnut Holdings for claiming to receive no cooking gas.

The company has always defended its reputation as having a “strong, 15-year track record as an owner-manager of properties throughout New York City.”

On its website, the company boasts “over 150 years of collective experience and a deep understanding of the real estate market.”

The Borough President’s speech is at 11 a.m. at Cardinal Hayes High School.