Consulting for City of Indianapolis to Secure $10M Energy Efficiency Grant
Overview:
In June 2010, the City of Indianapolis, Indiana was awarded $10 million in grant funds through the U.S. Department of Energy's "Retrofit Ramp-up" Program, now known as the Better Buildings Neighborhood Program. Indianapolis was selected as one of only 25 U.S. projects to receive a federal grant that year to support large-scale retrofits and make energy efficiency accessible to homeowners, businesses, schools, and community centers.
The nationwide "Retrofit Ramp-Up" projects were part of the overall $80 billion Recovery Act investment in clean energy and energy efficiency. The awards were the competitive portion of DOE's Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, which was funded for the first time under the Recovery Act to help state, local, and tribal communities make strategic investments in improving energy efficiency, and reduce energy use and fossil fuel emissions.
Project Details:
KERAMIDA conceived of the idea of an innovative and effective pilot program for neighborhood scale energy efficiency retrofits of structures. KERAMIDA developed the project concept and structure, formed the core partners group necessary to confirm commitments and identify leveraged funds, and completed all aspects of the project scope details, budget requirements, and timeline. KERAMIDA also secured the funding to prepare the grant application from the Indiana DOE and completed the U.S. DOE Retrofit Ramp-up Grant Application on behalf of the City of Indianapolis, Office of Sustainability, working in close collaboration with the City and key stakeholders. The City was awarded a $10M grant, one of only 25 grants awarded nationally by the U.S. DOE.
(photo: nearindy.org)
The Indianapolis Retrofit Ramp-up Project aimed to create sustainable neighborhood-scale energy efficiency pilot projects in two urban neighborhoods - Indianapolis and Lafayette. The project transformed a 470 square block neighborhood encompassing the Near Eastside of Indianapolis to a more energy efficient and economically sustainable community by retrofitting a diverse range of buildings in the region including residential, industrial and commercial units, schools and nonprofits within a large neighborhood in Indianapolis. The project provided for investments in energy efficiency education and outreach among an existing network of community support organizations. The Glen Acres community in the City of Lafayette underwent energy efficiency retrofits of homes to become near-zero energy use demonstration properties. The program then utilized these advanced energy reduction demonstrations including the Purdue Solar Decathlon Home to create community interest in retrofit activity throughout the neighborhood.
KERAMIDA worked closely with the City of Indianapolis to develop innovative models for neighborhood block-by-block focused retrofits of homes and businesses, as well as, innovative financing models to make energy savings accessible; including a revolving loan fund, an on-bill tariff loan repayment pilot program, quality of life fund, and carbon fund.
In implementing these models, Indianapolis was able to deliver verified energy savings and incorporate sustainable business models, to ensure that buildings will continue to be retrofitted after grant funds are spent. The Department of Energy used the lessons learned from the pilot programs to develop best-practice guides to comprehensive retrofit programs that could be adopted and implemented by other communities across the country.
Related Services:
KERAMIDA offers a wide variety of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) services to clients worldwide, including multi-facility industrial clients, industrial associations, law firms, and state organizations. Our experienced team of GHG experts provide carbon footprint evaluations, GHG inventories, GHG monitoring plans, and training.
