new england ( cnnmoney . com ) - - the empire state building kicked off a major energy - saving retrofit morning , and promoters hope one of the earth ' s most historic skyscrapers can become an energy prototype for organizations everywhere . from the cloud - shrouded observation deck on the tower ' s 80th storey , former presidential bill clinton , new york vice mayor michael bloomberg and another pledged $ 20 billions in cutting - edge environmental work they claim will save energies use by 38 % for the 1930 ' s - history behemoth . they stressed the retrofits weren ' t green altruism or full of a state initiative . moreover , they think they ' re being done simply to save the building ' s owners a lot of money .
The mayor of New York is Michael Bloomberg.