The Pittsburgh 2030 District has compiled the following services and benefits for District Partners. In the future, the District and its convener, Green Building Alliance, will build on strategic partnerships to leverage and/or create additional services, tools, and support that District Partners need to accomplish the 2030 property performance goals.
The Pittsburgh 2030 District has three distinct Partner categories: Property, Community, & Resource Partners. While all Partners are part of the Pittsburgh 2030 District, many benefits listed here may only be applicable to Property Partners. For more information on benefits for all Partner categories, please refer to Prospective Partners.
Evaluating Energy Use
We encourage all property owners, whether in the District or not, to evalulate the energy use of their properties. An energy audit or comissioned energy model can identify areas of improvement for your space and is a good first step towards streamlining operations and making sure your building is performing as efficiently as possible.
GreenWizard’s new free Energy Reduction Calculator will help gauge progress against the 2030 Challenge targets for energy use in new construction and major renovations. With a small amount of information, the Energy Reduction Calculator can determine the target energy use for a project and help to benchmark against the 2030 Challenge goals. The Calculator can also input data from an energy-modeling tool or import an eQuest PARMS file, if available. The Energy Reduction Calculator will allow the evaluation of multiple scenarios for buildings against the average/median site EUI. The tool allows for analysis of a project’s target EUI and shows the percent of energy reduction needed year by year to ensure success as the project moves towards carbon neutral. Additionally, cost savings over baseline design can be compared.
For more complementary resources, check out Green Building Alliance's compendium of local Energy Audit and Service Providers.
Utility Rebates
Worried about upfront cost? There are many different incentive programs available that can make upgrading a building more affordable.
Duquesne Light's Watt Choices program offers Act 129 rebates for lighting, equipment, and energy efficiency upgrades is available to all buildings to whom Duquesne Light distributes electricity. Duquesne Light and two of its energy conservation service providers (AllFacilities Energy Group and Enerlogics) are Resource Partners of the Pittsburgh 2030 District who can process Act 129 rebates.
Property Partners considering lighting or equipment upgrades can estimate potential energy savings and rebate amounts for proposed energy conservation measures through AllFacilities Energy Group here. Property Partners who have completed projects may still be eligible for rebates, which can be processed by Duquesne Light, AllFacilities, or Enerlogics. here for more information, or to begin the rebate process.
Beyond rebates, Duquesne Light offers financing to reduce the cost of energy conservation updates through the free AEFG Energy Profiles.
Building Performance Assessment
No-Cost, No-Obligation Energy Audit & Customized Dashboard
The Efficiency Network (TEN) offers 2030 District Property Partners powerful tools to help reach their ambitious energy reduction goals. These resources are offered with no-cost and no-obligation.
TEN's initial assessment addresses utility usage within existing building systems. Results are compiled into an ASSESS Report that benchmarks buildings and identifies cost-effective and high-impact energy efficiency opportunities.
If a District Property Partner decides to move forward from the report stage, TEN will provide a customized dashboard of actionable projects with firm pricing, detailed financial (ROI, NPV) and utility (KW, kWh, therm, kgal) information, sustainability metrics, and a range of project financing options.
Learn more about TEN’s ASSESS Questionnaire.
Building Performance Tracking & Reporting
Track & Share Building Performance: Energy Star Portfolio Manager
Property Partners can use ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager to benchmark building performance for energy intensity and water use--and easily share this information with the Pittsburgh 2030 District's aggregated tracking database.
Partners with an existing Portfolio Manger account can share data now.
Partners without an existing Portfolio Manger account can learn how to create an account.
Property Partners will also be informed about ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager trainings offered nationally and locally. These trainings typically cover basic information about the web-based tool, which is undergoing a major renovation to be live in mid-2013.
Pittsburgh 2030 District Partners who do not wish to use Portfolio Manager or who may want to complement its capabilites with more interactive or in-depth capabilities should explore other options below or contact Green Building Alliance for developing opportunities.
Track & Share Building Performance: Future Developments
The Pittsburgh 2030 District will provide a host of building performance and District comparison capabilities to support District Partners as they reach towards District goals. These include access to Green Building Alliance's own triple bottom line building performance tool, DASH: Database for Analyzing Sustainable and High Performance Buildings (in development).
Financial Incentives and Opportunities
As an incentive to help your small or medium sized businesses become more energy efficient, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) offers the Business Energy Savings Loan Program. Under this program, you can receive a $400 grant toward an Energy Audit of your business and low interest financing up to $50,000. Click to view guidelines and an application.
The Pittsburgh 2030 District centralizes and streamlines information about financing incentives and opportunities for District Partners. These opportunities may be made available through Community or Resource Partners, local utilities, or yet-to-be developed financing mechanisms. Pittsburgh 2030 District Property Partners are highly encouraged to take advantage of existing utility incentives, which helps utilities reach their state level reduction goals and reduces their time and resources spent on recruitment.
For a quick snapshot of some financing strategies that are ready and available to take advantage of, take a look at this handout from Metrus Energy.
BOMA / CCI Toolkit
The Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International and the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI) provide the BOMA Energy Performance Contracting (BEPC) model, which allows building owners and operators to execute sophisticated energy efficiency retrofits to existing buildings with an effective model contract and supporting documents.
Ongoing Education & Training to Meet Partner Needs
For all Pittsburgh 2030 District Partners, Green Building Alliance will provide and organize education and knowledge about financing and funding, training and other resources, high performance strategies, best practices, lessons learned, products and technologies, and case studies.
Small Changes Can Make Big Impacts
There are many resources out there to help change your building in small ways, and we are happy to help make these resources available.
Learn about energy-efficient lighting retrofits (via EEBHub) here.