In a statement, noting potential job creation, New York Building Congress president Richard Anderson says that "the governor's focus on renewable energy and smart grid development projects that are shovel ready would achieve a number of critical objectives for the New York State economy."

Touting his "innovative" roster of tenants at 7 WTC, developer Larry Silverstein says in a statement that the governor made the right choice by choosing the cutting edge structure as the venue for his proposals. In the release, Silverstein, CEO of Silverstein Properties Inc., says that "7 WTC has come to serve as a symbol of Downtown's emergence as the center of the city's new knowledge economy."

A Paterson spokeswoman reiterates the importance of sustainability to GlobeSt.com. "The real estate community should begin to adopt more sustainable business practices," she says, adding "I believe many companies are beginning to do so."

More to the point, according to the nonprofit think tank Council on Competitiveness, sustainability is likely to become what it calls a game changer. The council says that companies could "increasingly factor sustainability concerns into their site and investment decisions."

Michael Slattery, SVP at the Real Estate Board of New York, acknowledges the Governor is right, the city is home to cutting edge research, intellectual capital as well as medical and sciences in New York. He tells GlobeSt.com that people seem optimistic that corridors similar to the Silicon Valley can emerge here. "We can be hopeful that will happen," he says noting the certain as well as the uncertain benefits of new energy technology.

"There seem to be some areas that have proven truly beneficial," says Slaterry. "I'm not certain if switching light bulbs is worth the effort," while electricity generation "has been jumped on by the industry."

Saying he's hopeful that things will eventually blossom, Slattery adds "we are the financial capital of the world, and this is certainly a place for capital formation," and therefore the components are in place to make some of this "new economy" a reality. "Maybe, the governor's proposing will be a spark to make things happen," Slattery says. "When you've got all those components there, trying to maximize them is the beneficial thing to do."

But despite increased vacancy in the commercial office sector and rumors of more to come, there's the question of how far landlords will go in the build-out to accommodate high-tech tenants. "From what I gather, this sector is a costly product in terms of providing space, depending on the nature of the activities there," Slattery says.

Noting that the financial industry has been pummeled, not knocked out, Slattery says the commercial real estate community will follow the demands of the market. "If there's a real demand from the innovation sector, the industry will find ways to make it work," Slattery tells GlobeSt.com. "If they think it's profitable, and can deal with the high costs of being in New York, they will make this work."

Drawing upon an analogy of assisted living facilities in the city, Slattery says that when commercial real estate players started to recognize the aging population in the city, you started to see more senior living facilities here. "Seniors would rather be in New York rather than out in Pennsylvania or New Jersey because here, you're close to medical attention, social environments and all those things that make New York special," he says. Although senior housing hasn't replaced regular housing, Slattery says the commercial real estate community recognized a market it could tap.