Ketchum Energy Advisory Committee Annual Update and Recommendation for Electric Vehicle Charging Station

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1 March 21, 2016 Mayor Jonas and City Councilors City of Ketchum Ketchum, Idaho Mayor Jonas and City Councilors: Ketchum Energy Advisory Committee Annual Update and Recommendation for Electric Vehicle Charging Station Introduction/History The City Council created the Ketchum Energy Advisory Committee (KEAC) in February 2013, to advise the City on issues pertaining to energy efficiency, resiliency and climate change. The committee has met twice per month for over two years to discuss and strategize how to tackle these issues. On March 16, 2015, the KEAC brought recommended City of Ketchum Energy Conservation Goals to the City Council, and those goals were adopted at that meeting. In fiscal years and , $25,000 was budgeted each fiscal year for projects to help achieve the adopted goals. The funds were originally intended to be used to fund the solar installation at the Ore Wagon Museum, but an alternative funding mechanism, that did not require upfront funding, was approved. Therefore, those funds, along with the funds, are still available to the City for KEAC proposed projects. At the Council s July 20, 2015, meeting, the KEAC identified an electric vehicle charging station at the Ore Wagon Museum and energy efficiency/renewable energy upgrades to the Recreation Center as high priority projects. In October 2015, KEAC members appeared before the City Council to make a request for the City to incentivize renewable energy installations on private residences by offering a building permit reduction. This would help achieve the Council s community-wide renewable energy goals. The Council advised staff to review the case studies provided by KEAC, look at the request s impact on the City s budget, consider how to make such a program equitable and available to all Ketchum property owners, and address energy efficiency in addition to renewable energy. Current Report This is the first annual report on the City of Ketchum Energy Conservation Goals. Those 2030 goals can be summarized as follows: City operations: o Achieve 75% reduction in energy use o Achieve 100% renewable energy use o Achieve 100% greenhouse gas reduction Ketchum community: o Achieve 50% per capita reduction in energy use o Achieve 50% local renewable energy generation o Achieve 75% greenhouse gas reduction

2 The following sections report on the actions taken by the City in the last year towards reaching the adopted energy goals: City Operations Reduction in Energy Use: Staff has benchmarked 2015 energy usage against 2007 and determined: Overall City operations electrical usage is down over 35%. Overall City operations natural gas usage is down almost 37%. The City of Ketchum has also received a Government Leading by Example grant from the Idaho Office of Energy Resources (OER) for an energy audit of the Recreation Center building. As part of the grant requirements, staff has prepared an Energy Star Portfolio Manager account, which shows a preliminary estimate that the building performs at an Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of about 153, which is about 58% higher than median usage for a similar building type. The City has also secured Idaho Power sponsored, more advanced Foundation Services assistance for a more in-depth analysis that will build on the OER audit. Both audits are free for the City. Depending on the outcome of the two free audits, the City may choose to participate in a Cost Share analysis which builds an energy model of the building and calculates the return on investment for the proposed retrofits in order to inform the Council s decisions to undertake certain improvements. The fee for this analysis be determined after the Foundation Services analysis and would be split - 25% paid by the City and 75% by Idaho Power funding. Prior to initiating this third phase of analysis, staff would come to the Council to present the results of the first two, cost-free phases and to receive the Council s direction as to how to proceed. City Operations Renewable Energy Use: The Ore Wagon Museum solar installation will provide about 19% of City Hall s current annual power needs when it comes on line. In addition, a solar system is being explored at the Recreation Center. Staff will return to council for more discussion and direction once the energy audit has been completed. City Operations Greenhouse Gas Reduction: Both the reduction in energy use and the increase in solar production result in greenhouse gas reduction by the City. Per the Environmental Protection Agency s online greenhouse gas equivalency calculator, the lower City operations power usage results in an annual reduction of 1,210 metric tons of carbon dioxide, and the lower natural gas usage results in an annual reduction of 68 metric tons. The Ore Wagon Museum solar installation will offset about 24 metric tons annually, resulting in a total annual reduction of 1302 metric tons. The 2007 baseline reported 3812 metric tons of eco 2, the vast majority of which was made up of carbon dioxide, so the current annual greenhouse gas reduction between 2015 and 2007 will be about 34%. Community-wide Reduction in Energy Use: In January 2015, the City Council adopted the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code that requires that new construction and additions are about 30% more energy efficient than was required by the code in effect at the time of the 2007 benchmark year. In addition, in August 2015, revisions were made to the Ketchum green building code (Municipal Code, Section 15.20) requiring that all new appliances installed in residential additions or remodels shall be Energy Star and/or be 95% efficient. The results of these measures have not been quantified at this time. City of Ketchum, 3/17/16, Page 2 of 5

3 Community-wide Renewable Energy Use: In August 2015, the City Council adopted provisions that streamline the code requirements for solar system permitting so that the need for structural engineering may be eliminated if prescriptive requirements are met. At that time, the Council also adopted a subsidized solar permitting fee of $100 to incentivize solar installations. Two (2) solar permits have been issued under the reduced fee and expedited permitting process. Staff has reviewed the KEAC request to incentivize renewable energy installations by reducing building permit fees for projects that include solar installations. Staff found that the case studies provided by the KEAC did not actually subsidize such projects, with the exception of waiver of very modest ($50 100) renewable energy permitting fees. Most of the case studies subsidized green building, which the City of Ketchum already mandates. Staff has analyzed Planning and Building Department revenues and found that the total annual budgeted revenue from all permits issued by the department accounts for just 30% of the department s annual operating budget. The remainder comes from the general fund. In order for an incentive to be equitable, it must be applied uniformly across the city s population. In addition, per state law, the City may not fund projects that would benefit private entities. Therefore, the Council could consider an alternative to the KEAC request in the form of a mandate for solar installations on building projects over a certain size (perhaps 2,400 square feet, which is the national average house size). Projects on sites where a solar installation is infeasible could pay into an in-lieu fund that could be utilized to pay for solar projects on City or non-profit properties to benefit the community at large. If the Council is inclined to consider this approach, it may direct staff to research this idea further and then develop code to implement it. Community-wide Greenhouse Gas Reduction: Both reduction in energy use and increase in solar production result in greenhouse gas reduction in the city. In addition, the KEAC and City staff have been researching installation of an electric vehicle charging station at the Ore Wagon Museum. The charging station would provide a public benefit to our citizens and our visitors, attract visitors and promote the use of electric vehicles that offset carbon emissions that would be produced by non-electric vehicles. A variety of stations have been investigated, including networked vs. non-networked and pedestal vs. wallmounted. The least expensive options (at about $600 hardware cost) are intended for indoor use and are not robust enough for an exterior installation in our climate. The mid-price options ($1,000 $2,000)do not provide data tracking or other services provided by a networked charger. The higher priced options are fully networked and provide reports on station utilization, energy costs and greenhouse gas savings, advertising on digital map apps and navigation systems and allow drivers to make reservations. They also monitor the system s health and would allow the city to bill for the energy consumed, if the city chose to do that in the future. City of Ketchum, 3/17/16, Page 3 of 5

4 The following chart shows the relative costs of the charging stations researched: Manufacturer Hardware Cost Installation Cost Annual Fees Total cost for 5 years AeroVironment $700 $2,300 $0 $3,000 AeroVironment $1,800 $2,300 $0 $4,100 Blink $2,000 $2,300 $0 $4,300 Bosch $1,000 $2,300 $0 $3,300 GE Wattstation $600 $2,300 $0 $2,900 Schneider $1,166 $2,300 $0 $3,466 Telephonix $1,795 $2,300 $0 $4,095 GE Durastation $1,300 $2,300 $0 $3,600 SemaConnect $3,990 $2,300 $240 $7,490 ChargePoint $4,777 $2,300 $225 $8,202 At the March 21 Council meeting, the KEAC will present their analysis and reasons for recommending a ChargePoint, net-worked, Level 2 (220V), wall-mounted, non-proprietary charging station. This station will provide medium speed charging at a mid-cost range level (as opposed to a DC fast charger like the Tesla Super Charger) for any model of electric vehicle. It is robust enough to handle the elements, tracks and reports station utilization, energy costs and greenhouse gas savings, advertises on digital maps apps and navigation systems and allow drivers to make reservations. It also monitors the system s health and would allow the city to bill for the energy consumed. Financial Requirement/Impact The City has budgeted $50,000 for KEAC recommended energy projects, and any proposed expenditures would come out of those funds. The estimated installed cost of the ChargePoint charging station is $8,627, including a one (1) year warranty and three (3) years of pre-paid network service at $235 per year. If additional networked stations are installed in the future, similar upfront costs and service fees would apply. Prior to committing to any network contract, the City Attorney would review that contract to ensure its legality. The current cost of additional years of network service is $280 per year, which would need to be identified and accounted for in the annual budget going forward. Recommendation Staff recommends that the Council consider the KEAC s recommendation to fund the ChargePoint electric vehicle charging station with the funds already budgeted for KEAC recommended projects. In addition, the Council may wish to direct staff to research and develop a mandatory solar energy policy for larger construction projects. Recommended Motion I move to approve the KEAC s recommended ChargePoint electric vehicle charging station and direct staff to review the contract to ensure its legality and then proceed with installation of the station and execution of the networking contract; and/or I move to direct staff to research and develop a mandatory solar energy policy for larger construction projects. City of Ketchum, 3/17/16, Page 4 of 5

5 Sincerely, Rebecca F. Bundy Senior Planner / Building and Development Manager City of Ketchum, 3/17/16, Page 5 of 5