HomeMy WebLinkAbout144 - 12/04/2018 - AMENDING CHAPTER 12 OF THE CITY CODE TO ESTABLISH THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A BUILDING ENERGY AND WATER S ORDINANCE NO. 144, 2018
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
AMENDING CHAPTER 12 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF
FORT COLLINS TO ESTABLISH THE REQUIREMENTS
FOR A BUILDING ENERGY AND WATER SCORING PROGRAM
WHEREAS,the City of Fort Collins' strategic vision seeks to build a culture of innovation
and a future climate economy; and
WHEREAS, on March 3, 2015, City Council adopted Resolution 2015-030, recognizing
the 2015 Climate Action Plan Framework ("2015 CAP Framework"), which contains a high level
analysis of the strategies necessary to reduce Fort Collins's community-wide greenhouse gas
emissions and established goals to reduce emissions to 20% below 2005 levels by 2020; and
additionally, established the goals of reducing emissions to 80% below 2005 levels by 2030 and
to be carbon neutral by 2050; and
WHEREAS, on December 15, 2015, City Council adopted Resolution 2015-115,
approving the 2015 Energy Policy, which establishes goals for reducing energy in existing
buildings; and
WHEREAS, on March 1, 2016,City Council adopted Resolution 2016-023, approving the
2015 Water Efficiency Plan and establishing a goal to reduce water use to 130 gallons per capita
per day by 2030 of which goal community building water scoring serves an integral component in
identifying strategies; and
WHEREAS, on April 19, 2016, City Council adopted Ordinance No. 046, 2016,
recognized the electric utility benefits of community building energy scoring by authorizing
funding from the Electric Utility Fund to establish a Building Energy Disclosure and Scoring_
effort to manage or reduce peak demand and overall electric service loads; and
WHEREAS, on October 2, 2018, City Council adopted Resolution 2018-094, establishing
a communitywide 100%renewable electricity goal by 2030,in furtherance of the City's 2015 CAP
Framework, 2015 Energy Policy goals; and
WHEREAS, on-going community building energy and water scoring serves,as an integral
component in identifying strategies to meet the City's 2015 CAP Framework, 2015 Energy Policy,
201.5 Water Efficiency Plan, and renewable electricity goals, and the absence of this tracking
metric reduces the efficiency of measures intended to meet those community goals; and
WHEREAS,Building Energy and Water Scoring(BES) increases transparency and access
to building information, and enhances coordination and efficiencies among efficiency programs
and partner organizations across public, nonprofit, and private sectors; and
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WHEREAS, publicly available BES data provides transparent energy and water
performance information to prospective tenants and investors and will thereby improve the City's
ability to attract tenants and investors seeking to live and work in a world-class City; and
WHEREAS, as of 2018, more than twenty leading peer U.S. cities, including Denver,
Boulder, Kansas City,St. Louis, Seattle;and Austin, have adopted BES reporting and transparency
requirements, demonstrating the acceptability and feasibility of such requirements among local
governments; and
WHEREAS, Utilities, Sustainability Services, and Environmental Services staff have
identified proposed BES program requirements with input from a community working group
composed of independent commercial building owners, operators, and real estate professionals;
and public engagement at a series of community events and a project website; and
WHEREAS, Utilities'staff further identified specific benefits of a BES program that will
facilitate energy and resource conservation by improving building owner awareness of whole
building utility consumption and incentivizing efficiency upgrades,which will reduce demand and
replace inefficient or damaged building systems to the benefit large commercial building utility
ratepayers; and
WHEREAS, the BES program recommended by staff relies on support from Utility
Services and Sustainability and Environmental Services divisions, over a phased implementation
with delayed compliance enforcement expected to begin in 2021-2022, and
WHEREAS, consistent with Article XII, Section 6 of the Fort Collins City Charter,
approving funding a portion of the total cost of a BES program with Electric Utility Funds
reflects the proportionate benefit expected to accrue to Electric Utility ratepayers across service
levels through focus and management on minimizing overall operating capital needs of the
Electric Utility and avoiding rate impacts that otherwise may be required to support increasing
peak demand and electric service loads; and
WHEREAS, consistent with findings in Ordinance No..046, 2016 and Resolution 2016-
023, the proposed BES program can be supported by available staff and resources funded pro
rata with Electric and Water utility funds, and General Fund revenues from the Sustainability and
Environmental Services divisions, based on projected energy, water and environmental benefits,
and
WHEREAS, staff recommends City Council adopt the proposed BES program
requirements, in furtherance of Council's support of community climate, energy and water
efficiency efforts, with such program to be administered by Sustainability Services staff in
collaboration with Utilities Customer Connections and Environmental Services resources; and
WHEREAS, the City Council finds and determines that the adoption of this Ordinance is
necessary for the public's health,safety and welfare and,therefore,wishes to authorize the creation
and administration of the Building Energy and Water Scoring program requirements described in
this Ordinance.
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NOW,THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT
COLLINS as follows:
Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and
findings contained in the recitals set forth above.
Section 2.. That Chapter 12 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended
by the adoption of a new Article XI to be entitled "Building Energy and Water Scoring" with the
applicable requirements and conditions of such program to read as follows:
Sec. 12-201. - Purpose and applicability
(a) The purpose of this Article is to establish a Building Energy and Water Scoring Program
that requires owners of existing buildings ("Covered Buildings") to benchmark building energy
and water performance, and makes such building performance information publicly available, in
the interest of increasing transparency and access to community building information, and
enhanced coordination and efficiencies among City energy efficiency programs and partner
organizations across public, nonprofit, and private sectors..
(b) The provisions of this Article shall:
(1) Apply to any person who owns a Covered Building or is a registered agent of an
entity owning a Covered Building within the City limits; and
(2) Apply to aggregated utility usage data reported in a statistical format; including
ENERGY STAR® score.
(c) This Article shall not apply to Fort Collins Utilities customer financial data or other data
protected from disclosure under §26-26 of this Code, unless requested in writing by the utility
customer.
Sec. 12-202. - Definitions
The following words,terms and phrases,when used in this Article,shall have the meaning ascribed
to them in this section. Words, terms and phrases defined in the rules, regulations, policies and
procedures adopted by the City Manager shall have the meaning set forth therein:
Benehmarking shall mean measuring a Covered Building's energy performance using the
ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® tool.
Covered Building shall mean any building or group of adjacent buildings in the City of
Fort Collins with a Gross Floor Area that is five thousand (5,000) square feet or larger.
Commercial covered buildings are defined by ENERGY STAR®Portfolio Manager® and
defined by Commercial Building Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS). Covered
buildings include apartments and condominium three stories or more in height above grade
and representing multifamily structures defined by a typical R-2 occupancy by the
International Building Code.
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Energy Efficiency Program shall mean the administrative program funded by the City of
Fort Collins Utilities providing rebate and incentive money for energy efficiency upgrades
for new construction and existing commercial buildings.
ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® shall mean the online tool created by the US
Environmental Protection Agency used to measure and track a building's energy use, water
consumption, waste diversion and greenhouse gas emissions.
Energy Use Intensity or EUI shall mean a building's energy use expressed as energy per
square foot per year as a function of its size and other characteristics. A whole building's
EUI is typically measured in thousands of BTU per square foot per year(kBTU/ft2/yr).
Gross Floor Area or GFA shall mean the total property square footage, measured between
the principal exterior surfaces of the enclosing fixed walls of a building, as defined in the
ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® definitions.
Occupancy shall mean the percentage of a property's Gross Floor Area that is occupied
and operational.
Owner shall mean the person or entity including common interest ownership groups having
a legal or equitable interest in real property and the associated asset features of a Covered
Building.
Reporting or Report shall mean the data submitted each year via the ENERGY STAR®
Portfolio Manager® tool using a template and submission link to be distributed and
publicized by the City of Fort Collins. All information expressly denoted as mandatory by
either ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® or the City shall be included in the
submission.
Water Use Intensity or WUI shall mean a building's water use expressed as all water
sources divided by the building sq. ft. (not including parking or irrigated area). A whole
building's WUI is typically expressed in gallons per square foot per year (gal/ft2/yr).
Sec. 12-203. Building energy and water score reporting.
(a) Initial Compliance. Owners shall begin benchmarking building energy and water usage
through ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® upon the dates listed below and will follow an
annual reporting cycle thereafter:
(1) Owners of Commercial Covered Buildings, other an including City-owned
Covered Buildings; with a Gross Floor Area equal to or greater than twenty thousand
(20,000) square feet shall begin reporting by March 1, 2020.
(2) Owners of Commercial Covered Buildings, including City-owned Covered
Buildings, with a Gross Floor Area between ten thousand (10,000) and twenty thousand
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(20,000) square feet shall begin reporting by March 1, 2021.
(3) Owners of Multifamily Covered Buildings with a Gross Floor Area equal to or
greater than twenty thousand (20,000) square feet shall begin reporting by March 1, 2021.
(4) Owners of Commercial Covered Buildings, including City-owned Covered
Buildings, with a Gross Floor Area between five thousand (5,000) and ten thousand
(10,000) square feet shall begin reporting by March 1, 2022.
(5) Owners of Multifamily Covered Buildings with a Gross Floor Area equal to or
greater than ten thousand (10,000) and up to twenty thousand (20,000) square feet shall
begin reporting by March 1, 2022.
(6) Owners of Multifamily Covered Buildings, with a Gross Floor Area between five
thousand (5,000) and ten thousand (10,000) square feet shall begin reporting by March 1,
2023.
(b) Ongoing compliance. After the Initial Compliance Date for each Owners group,as set forth
in section (a), each Owner group will reportion an annual basis, as follows.-
(1) Benchmarking. The Owner shall provide the information necessary to benchmark
energy and water usage as defined in §12-202 in accordance with this Article and any rules,
regulations,policies and procedures adopted by the City Manager.
(2) Reporting. For every building subject to this Article, the Owner shall annually
submit to the City an energy and water benchmarking report according to the schedule set
forth herein. The energy and water benchmarking report shall be based on data entered into
ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager® reflecting the energy and water performance
information for the whole building during the full calendar year being reported. The energy
and water benchmarking "report" shall, at minimum, include the building address, facility
gross square footage, property type, and the individual or entity responsible for the
benchmarking report.
(3) Transparency. Reported benchmarking information and data obtained from reports
submitted pursuant to this Article, including only ENERGY STAR score, Energy Use.
Intensity, and Water Use Intensity, shall be available to the public, consistent with City
open data policies, as adopted in Resolution 2017-014 and on file with the City Clerk as
shall be amended from time to time.
(4) Score Mandates Prohibited.The City shall not require a minimum ENERGY STAR
score for non-City-owned buildings pursuant to this program.
Sec. 12-204. -Data verification; records retention.
(a) Owners are required to submit accurate and complete data as defined in this Article and
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ENERGY STAR@ Portfolio Manager@ How to Get Utility Data into Portfolio Manager@ and by
using the data quality checker tool within ENERGY STAR@ Portfolio Manager@ for each
Covered Building in their portfolio.
(b) Owners shall maintain the following records for a period of at least three years, and shall
make such records available for inspection during business hours upon reasonable notice from the
City:
(1) ENERGY STAR@ Portfolio Manager@ account data;
(2) Proof of tenant data requests for energy or space use attribute data from any
separately metered tenants; and
(3) Any back-up information substantiating the energy data and space use attribute
information entered into the ENERGY STAR@ Portfolio Manager@.
(c) Any person who fails, neglects or refuses to submit accurate and complete data as
required by this Article is subject to enforcement under §12-206 of this Code.
Sec. 12-205.—Exemptions; variance.
(a) Owners may apply annually to the City Manager for exemption from the benchmarking
and reporting requirements of this Article and in the manner described in any rules and regulations
promulgated by the City Manager. The City Manager, or his or her delegate will review and render
a decision on any application for exemption or variance from the requirements of this Article. An
exemption or variance may be granted for any building that meets at least one of the following
criteria:
(1) The building was not occupied for all twelve (12) months of the calendar year for
which benchmarking is required;
(2) A demolition permit for the entire building has been issued and for which
demolition work has commenced on or before the date the benchmarking report is due;
(3) The building is presently experiencing qualifying financial distress, as defined by
any of the following: (1) the building is the subject of a qualified tax lien sale or public
auction due to property tax arrearages (2) the building is controlled by a court appointed
receiver; or (3) the building has been acquired by a deed in lieu of foreclosure;
(4) The building had an average physical occupancy of less than sixty (60) percent,
throughout the calendar year for which benchmarking is required,based on criteria set forth
in rules, regulations,policies and procedures adopted by the City Manager;
(5) The building is used 50% or more for industrial or agricultural processes, as such
activities are defined by ENERGY STAR@ Portfolio Manager@;
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(6) The Owner can demonstrate the subject building's performance information is or
involves a confidential business practice, including trade secret, privileged, or confidential
commercial information. In order to qualify for this. exemption, the Owner shall
specifically identify the information it believes to be confidential and provide a written
statement describing the manner in which public disclosure would cause substantial harm
to the Owner's competitive position in efficient energy usage alone will not be considered
confidential commercial information; and
(7) The City Manager determines that, due to special circumstances unique to the
applicant's building and not based on a condition caused by actions of the applicant, strict
compliance with the benchmarking and reporting requirements would cause undue
hardship or would not be in the public interest.
(b) The City Manager's determination regarding applicability of an exception or variance
under this section shall be final; no further administrative review or appeal to the City shall be
available to an Owner aggrieved by such determination.
Sec. 12-206.—Implementation.
The City Manager may adopt such other rules and regulations concerning the benchmarking and
reporting of building performance information as may be necessary to implement the provisions
of this Article not in conflict with such provisions.
Sec. 12-207. -Violations and penalties.
Any person who violates §§12-203 or 12-204 of this Article without an applicable exception or
variance commits a civil infraction and is subject to the penalty provisions.of subsection 1-15(f)
of the Code, except:
(a) the civil penalty for such infraction shall not exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000.)
per violation; and
(b) failure to comply with §§12-203 or 12-204 in any calendar year shall constitute a
single violation in that calendar year.
Sec. 12-208.—Evaluation.
The City Manager shall present an annual report to the City Council each year evaluating the
Building Energy and Water Scoring Program output and outcomes.
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Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 20th day of
November, A.D. 2018, and to be presented for final passage on the 4th day of December, A.D.
2018.
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Passed and adopted on final reading on the 4th day of December, A.D. 2018.
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