The City of Chisholm’s 100-year-old City Hall Complex was in need of efficiency upgrades. Heat was not being dispersed evenly or efficiently throughout the building and lights were out-of-date and inefficient. Mark Casey, City Administrator in Chisholm, and Steve Erickson, the staff leader for Buildings, Web and Safety, coordinated an integrated plan for improving the use of community energy dollars invested in city buildings.
Casey commented: “At one point, I realized that we did not have the money for this project, but we could not afford to not add this efficiency.” That kind of thinking is what led the Chisholm team to seek out resources to implement new technology.
The City of Chisholm was awarded two grants for energy improvements via the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009: one from the Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program and the other from the Facility Cost-Share program. They received $100,000 to improve lighting and controls in two city buildings, and another $51,000 for controls to help effectively manage the heating distribution in City Hall. Eventually, they also secured matching funds that allowed them to implement a project totaling $202,000.
Step 1 was an energy audit of the complex that confirmed lighting and heating inefficiencies in the complex. Step 2: hire local contractor to work on the lighting and controls. Step 3: hire local contractor to upgrade the heating and distribution system.
Two high-efficiency natural gas boilers were installed in the basement of City Hall and variable speed pumps were added to best disperse heat throughout the three-story building. 100 T12 light fixtures were replaced with T8s, improving the quality and efficiency of the building’s lighting.
Casey and Erickson estimated that lighting demand was reduced by more than 10% and heating costs were reduced by more than 15% after the project implementation.
Casey commented that the project was not always easy when you are working with a 100-year-old building, there will undoubtedly be a lot of surprises.
While the age of the structure added to the length of the project and the budget the City Council was pleased with the results. As importantly, the team proved that even historic buildings can achieve better efficiency when updated with the appropriate technology. The same could be true for your facilities!
Other Local Government Energy Action Heating & Cooling Stories:
- Local Government HVAC & boiler updates: 50+ projects for energy efficiency
- Finlayson Community Center receives boiler, HVAC, and weatherization upgrades
- Energy savings, safety, and comfort: Paynesville City Hall receives new HVAC system
- Discomfort and inefficiency remedied with Breckenridge City Hall boiler replacement
- Hopkins heats up their city’s savings with an energy efficient boiler
- City of Carlton adopts tried and true energy retrofits
- Building consolidation and upgrades save energy and money in the City of Spicer
About the Local Government Energy Action Series:
This year-long effort tells the stories of nearly 50 Minnesota municipalities, counties, and schools and the tangible results of their energy-saving efforts to inspire others to take their own actions.
Local Government Energy Action is brought to you by the Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs) in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Commerce, Division of Energy Resources.
