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Largest Commercial PACE Project in the U.S.
Los Angeles County recently announced the start of a $7 million "greening" project funded through its commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy program, the largest PACE-financed project in the U.S to date.
The Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City is using LA County PACE to install energy efficient glass, new LED lighting and low-flow showerheads, among other things. The building improvements will reduce energy consumption by a whopping 50 percent and conserve more than 2.8 million gallons of water a year for annual savings of approximately $800,000.
"PACE is the only funding mechanism that is credible in providing verifiable information to our investors, and therefore is the ideal tool for us to move forward in becoming the gold standard in sustainable hotels," said Mark Davis, Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City General Manager.
The Energy Network is working to expand PACE throughout its service region. Currently there are close to 40 project applications equaling more than $36 million worth of sustainable upgrades in Los Angeles County.
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Upgrading Buildings
is Just the Beginning
 "Energy efficiency is not only about upgrading buildings," says Ron Mohr, a section manager with Los Angeles County's Energy Management Division. "That's just part of it. You must also have energy management in the long run."
Enterprise Energy Management Information System (EEMIS) is an industry-leading, enterprise-wide energy management system that provides comprehensive information and intelligent analytical tools to actively and economically manage energy through an intuitive web-based interface. It is also an integral component in The Energy Network's toolbox, available to help public agencies meet their goals.
Los Angeles County purchased the software and manages the system. Currently more than 50 local agencies share the platform, greatly decreasing costs for all participating agencies.
For an individual city to create an energy management system from scratch can run in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, Mohr says. Through The Energy Network and LA County, participating agencies can have a state-of-the-art system for a fraction of the cost.
"You can track financial data, consumption history and make all the comparisons and analysis you need to," Mohr said. "It helps identify opportunities and track progress."
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Neighborly Outreach
 Planning a home energy retrofit can seem daunting-until a friend or neighbor shows you the ropes. The Energy Network is researching outreach models that help foster this type of grassroots, organic outreach.
Working closely with local government staff, The Energy Network is piloting local initiatives to generate sustainable outreach that minimizes the need for city staff time. One example is Community Home Energy Retrofit Project (CHERP®), a volunteer, community based strategy to develop and promote Energy Upgrade California offerings. The model was piloted in Claremont last year to great success, leading to 200 home retrofits. The Energy Network is now expanding this model to other cities through collaborations with our Advisory Board members, councils of government and city staff.
Our goal is to encourage homeowners to say, "Hey, let me tell you about my Home Upgrade..."
About The
Energy Network
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) created The Energy Network to serve public agencies and their constituencies throughout Southern California.
The Energy Network's mission is to harness the collective action of public agencies, residents and businesses by providing needed resources and technical expertise that help save energy.
The pilot phase is funded through the end of 2014.
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This Program is administered by the County of Los Angeles and funded by California utility ratepayers under the auspices of the California Public Utilities Commission. |
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