Structural Recommendations

Below are a few key takeaways from the Task Force recommendations and Community Contributor recommendations.

Buildings Proposed to be Included (Covered) under BPS:

BPS policy recommendations center on increased efficiency demonstrated through decreased Energy Use Intensity (EUI). Based on committee recommendations, staff recommend covering commercial and multi-family buildings 5,000 square feet and above. The proposed BPS would include just below 1,400 buildings, 32% of which already meet proposed targets. Covered buildings account for 40% of all Fort Collins building electricity use (including residential and industrial properties).

BPS Targets:

Staff recommends adopting an EUI target for individual covered buildings. EUI is typically measured by thousand British thermal units (kBTU/square foot) and is a common metric that includes multiple fuels (often natural gas and electricity) used for energy in a building within a single metric. EUI is tracked through Utilities' existing benchmarking program, ensuring objective targets are easily monitored. A common metric for tracking BPS compliance around the country, and used in both Denver and the State of Colorado, EUI provides an objective comparison of all energy use accounting for weather, building size, and property use type.

Staff recommend buildings between 5,000-10,000 square feet have more-attainable targets.

Compliance Timeline:

Staff recommend implementing a BPS with 2027 as the interim timeline and 2030 as the target deadline. For the smallest cohort of covered buildings, those 5,000-10,000 square feet, staff proposes an extended timeline. These dates ensure time for community education, engagement, and action, and also are timely enough to contribute to Our Climate Future 2030 emissions reductions goals.

Alternative Compliance Pathways:

Staff designed alternatives to ensure buildings are not tasked with meeting unachievable targets. Recommended “off-ramps” include EUI reduction caps which limit the maximum energy savings a building would need to achieve, timeline and target adjustments, waivers, and the potential for providing additional help for under-resourced buildings.

For more details, watch the April 23, 2024 City Council Work Session here.