Green Building Task Force

City of Springfield – Greene County Green Building Task Force Recommendations August 8, 2013 The Springfield/Greene County Green Building Task Force was created by Springfield City Council and Greene County Commission action. The Charge to the Task Force was to investigate and evaluate the latest “green building” policies, procedures, and ordinances and to recommend their application to regional development. (Appendix 1) The Task Force was facilitated by Barbara Lucks, Sustainability Officer, City of Springfield, representing the City and Greene County. Members of the Task Force included: Organization Representative American Institute of Architects Springfield Jason Hainline American Planning Association Ronda Headland Citizen Representative: City Emily Fox Citizen Representative: Greene County Lisa Drew-Alton Construction Specifications Institute Michael Nesbitt Developer Issues Input Group (DIIG) Jared Rasmussen Higher Education Environmental Science Program Brad Kielhofner Home Builders Association Jennifer McClure* Ozarks Chapter, Missouri Society of Professional Engineers Neil Brady Ozarks Green Building Coalition Jeff Barber Southwest Missouri Code Officials Harlan Hill** Springfield Board of Realtors Zach Miller Springfield Contractors Association King Coltrin Springfield/Greene County Environmental Advisory Board Melissa Cox U.S. Green Building Council Joel Thomas Technical Resources City of Springfield staff Errin Kemper Ralph Rognstad Chris Straw Greene County staff Vanessa Brandon Chris Coulter City Utilities staff Cara Shaefer HBA Technical Representative Jason Bekebrede Citizen Representative Matt O’Reilly *Later replaced by Shane Schoeller, and then Sam Bradley **Resigned – did not attend any meetings 1 Meeting Dates Meeting 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Member 10/17/12 11/14/12 12/12/12 1/16/13 2/20/13 3/20/13 4/17/13 5/15/13 Jeff Barber        Neil Brady      King Coltrin     Melissa Cox       Lisa Drew-Alton       Emily Fox     Jason Hainline       Ronda Headland       Harlan Hill**      Brad Kielhofner       Jennifer McClure*--HBA      Shane Schoeller--HBA      Sam Bradley--HBA        Zach Miller         Michael Nesbitt       Jared Rasmussen       Joel Thomas       *Later replaced by Shane Schoeller and then Sam Bradley **Resigned - did not attend any meetings Meeting Format At Meeting #1, Task Force members discussed their knowledge and assessment of the current status of green building in Springfield/Greene County and identified areas about which they wanted additional information from staff. At Meeting #2, City/County/City Utilities staff presented information updating the Task Force on current policies, practices and challenges regarding green building. In subsequent meetings, the Task Force broke into small study groups, with associated staff resources assisting the various small groups. Additional information requested by the Task Force members was presented at the beginning of the meeting following the requests, prior to returning to the small study groups. 2 Small Study Groups At Meeting #2, topics for the small group discussions were identified as: Process, Energy, Stormwater, Codes and Residential. These were reviewed by the Task Force members at Meeting #3, and it was agreed that the issue of “Codes” should be included in the discussions by all groups, rather than as a stand-alone group topic. At Meeting #3, Task Force members and technical resources formed the following four groups for discussion and research relating to green building, according to their expertise on the subject. Process/Policy Jeff Barber Lisa Drew-Alton Emily Fox Ronda Headland *Matt O’Reilly Structure Jason Hainline Brad Kielhofner Joel Thomas *Cara Shaefer *Chris Straw Site/Stormwater Neil Brady King Coltrin Melissa Cox Jared Rasmussen **Carrie Lamb **Kevin Barnes Residential Jason Bekebrede Jenifer McClure Zach Miller Michael Nesbitt *Vanessa Brandon *Chris Coulter *Denotes Technical Resource **Denotes Staff 3 General Recommendations 1. Support practices and policies that encourage green building efforts and incorporate the “triple bottom line” (social, economic, environmental sustainability). As a community, place a high value on quality of life and the role our “built environment” (including indoor features) plays in supporting that quality of life. 2. Based on community/neighborhood visioning, perhaps with a priority placed on critical geographical/neighborhood areas, adopt those portions of the Field Guide 2030 that pertain to sustainable development, including:  Accept that policy can include items that may have already been completed in order to formalize completed initiatives in the overall plan.  Identify a sustainability officer for the community. (This has been accomplished)  Position Springfield (with CU) as the regional leader in sustainable development.  Emphasize enforcement of existing codes before new codes are adopted.  Utilize enforcement to encourage good behavior.  Review and align fines/fees as a method of funding enforcement efforts. 3. Recognize that programs such as LEED are not minimum standards. Do not recommend the use of any identified third-party standard, but rather focus on the various practices, processes and results, recognizing that building practices have typically been increasing energy efficiency over the last few years. Affordability and cost/benefit analyses are essential. Consumer choice and budget considerations must be a part of the development of any green building policy or procedure. 4. Pursue a mechanism to enable those builders/developers that wish to go beyond the minimum standards required by the building code. This will require:  Define “beyond the code.”  Remain sensitive to the financial impact to builders/developers and that changes to the building code may affect the selling price of structures.  Provide standard education for City/County staff, the building/development community, consumers, etc., to facilitate communication and reduce roadblocks and time taken to review innovative practices.  Provide incentives to encourage beneficial practices. 5. Support an annual review of progress, particularly for items that may not be up to the most current code requirements. Utilize a work group made up of staff and community experts to identify those areas and recommend strategies to keep these efforts moving forward. (It is noted that the City and County are on a 6- year code adoption cycle.) 4 6. Provide public recognition as an incentive for encouraging green building practices/policies:  Identify multiple paths/ ways to be “green” – LEED and others, e.g., HBA guidelines, Energy Star, etc.  Associate incentives with “qualified” projects.  Include sustainable site initiatives such as American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), American Planning Association (APA).  Cash incentives might include discounts or rebates of: o Inspection permit fees. o Utility tap fees. o Property tax. o Sales tax. o Ground disturbance fees. o Enhanced enterprise utility bills. 7. Encourage innovation through recognition by the City/County, Chamber of Commerce and other appropriate bodies through the use of newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, websites, social media, press releases, media events, speakers bureaus. Examples could include: Green Builder, Green Realtor, Green Developer, Green Company, etc. The City/County could also promote “Green City Living” through the same media outlets. 8. While recognizing that building practices have typically been increasing energy efficiency over the last few years (in all but, perhaps, the most inexpensive homes), the Task Force recommends that adopted policies and practices make sound energy management related to building practices a priority. 9. Encourage renewable energy.  Pursue Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) participation, where eligible (County and CU).  Monitor legislation that supports achievable, affordable energy management practices (City and County). 5 Recommendations by Small Study Groups:  Structure 1. Incorporate, as practicable, key principles from sustainable building rating systems into the building code. Refine the code revision process to stimulate continuing input from constituents, such as American Institute of Architects (AIA), American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), Springfield Contractors Association, Home Builders Association, etc. 2. Identify a funding source, or some other mechanism, to add staff or staff support to focus on building sustainability in the Building Development Services Department (or other appropriate department), and/or to fund other incentives. Staff members would help to oversee compliance, provide education, etc. Inculcate sustainable building practices throughout the culture of the City and County organizations. 3. Develop an energy performance rating methodology where owners of all buildings are encouraged (not required) to disclose building energy use, within specified categories. Investigate models from other cities. Be mindful of privacy issues regarding private buildings. 4. Review the 2030 targets (http://www.aia.org/about/initiatives/aiab079458) adopted by American Institute of Architects (AIA), Council of Mayors and federal government.  Policy/Process 1. Explore the development and implementation of economic development incentives such as a layered-incentives framework from federal through local levels (examples: City/County PACE, City BDS, CU demand side management). 2. Evaluate all green decisions according to a triple-bottom line – social, economic and environmental responsibility. 3. Promote “smart growth” principles for community growth and infill. 4. Consider how to manage the matter of building codes, enforcement and recognition of third-party certifications. Three options appear to exist regarding the handling of these items:  Adoption of strict guidelines with enforcement. (Anticipated to be strongly opposed by the building/development community.)  Adoption of strict guidelines with “complaint-only” level of enforcement. 6   Voluntary use of strong guidelines with encouragement from officials. 5. Adopt the current suite of international codes and phase-in residential codes with sensitivity to local concerns, such as affordability standards, etc. Review adopted codes on an annual basis. 6. Formally recognize third-party, verifiable green building standards. Examples include:  LEED  EPA: Energy Star, Indoor AIRplus & WaterSense  Sustainable Sites Initiative (SSI)  National Green Building Standard (NAHB) 7. Site/Stormwater 1. Balance environmental quality and compliance with regulatory mandates and affordability. 2. Keep abreast of emerging technology, as well as evolving regulations. 3. Identify specific issues to study/monitor, including:  Complete design standards.  Incentives such as: o Vegetation preservation. o Open space preservation. o Tree preservation credit. o Quantity control credit.  Water quality credit toward rain- and water-harvesting systems. 4. Adopt a regional approach to stormwater management (Springfield/Greene County, plus the metropolitan area). 5. Support the recommendations of the 2013 Citizen Stormwater Task Force. 6. Encourage innovation via flexibility of stormwater review by City or County, as appropriate. 7. Develop a method of quantifying how projects are benefitting the City and County stormwater systems by reducing the runoff rate, quantity loads and pollutant loads. 7  Residential The Task Force acknowledges the efforts of City/County staff and considers the current process, generally, to be working well. The Task Force recommends continuing efforts to improve. 1. Increase the perceived value of green building practices to not only raise the salability of the end product, but also to ensure that the product is appraised at its full value. This will allow the buyer to receive the full benefit of the product’s value when negotiating financing. Toward that end, the following recommendations are made:  Homebuyers and consumers wanting to build/remodel energy efficient properties should hire a “qualified/certified” third-party rater or auditor (adequately trained) to ensure upgrades are done to improve efficiency. This might require a change in existing regulations, as well as a method of defining “qualified/certified.”  To assist the homebuyer and consumers in the selection of the third-party rater or auditor, the Board of Realtors should provide: o List of raters/auditors. o “What to expect from third-party” guidance. 2. The City/County should:  Work with industry groups to provide training for City and County staff, as well as the general community, regarding current green building trends and technology.  Provide funding to host green building educational seminars/workshops. Promote these within the industry and make available to the general public, as well as targeting mortgage lenders, appraisers and real estate agents.  Promote Springfield/Greene County as a green/sustainable, friendly place to build, live and work. Do this by looking for local/regional/national media opportunities. 3. Take a leadership role in providing homeowners education, including the benefits of green building features. Also, work with the building/development community to maximize the benefits of green building features and how to use/maximize them.  Collect, maintain for reference, and distribute information on existing green building resources, practices, perhaps through the Environmental Resource Center.  Encourage/facilitate ongoing sharing of information/efforts and results – (e. g., with the Partnership for Sustainability). 8  4. Recognize the delicate balance between improved building practices (not only green practices), the potential for increased building costs and the effect of this additional cost on the market pricing and ultimate salability of residential structures. Maintaining the competiveness of the Springfield/Greene County area (compared to surrounding counties/communities) is also a concern. Local home builders, through the HBA, have offered training for the NAHB Certified Green Professional and have encouraged the promotion of green building benefits to potential home buyers. 5. Work with the Springfield Board of Realtors to promote the distinction that Springfield was the first community in the country to include green practices/products/policies as positive selling features in their multi- listings. 6. Within the next three years, develop a local green building certification (“Good Housekeeping Seal”—similar to Ozarks GreenScore, but for residential application) for both new and remodeling projects and promote this certification to build the perceived value of green building practices/products. 7. Home Builders Association of Greater Springfield Comments to Green Building Task Force Report (Appendix 2) Statement of Appreciation: City/County staff applauds the willingness of these community members and professionals to serve on the Green Building Task Force and recognizes the expertise of those both on the Task Force and on the Technical Resources group. When completed, this report will be presented to the Springfield City Council and the Greene County Commission. 9 Appendix 1 10 11 12 13 14 15 Appendix 2 16 17 18