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June 1, 2013 Start: PECO Rebates, Benchmarking, and Light Up Philly
The Summer of Philadelphia Energy Independence apparently…begins NOW.
The home of American Independence is taking the lead with GREEN Lighting to become the home of American “Energy” Independence this summer. The program for commercial lighting is Light Up Philly (www.LightUpPhilly.com), and it is celebrating the June 1st convergence of multiple initiatives that will help meet Philadelphia Mayor Michel Nutter’s goal of making Philadelphia the number one green city in America.
June 1: New PECO Rebates
June 1: Commercial Benchmarking
June 1: Manufacturer Discounts
The move toward the regions energy intelligence has been several years in the making and the Light Up Philly program has clustered the opportunities to illustrate the layered Discounts and Return on Investment available for Greater Philadelphia area business owners and operators. The tight type of Energy intelligence, such as LED tube technology, LED parking garage fixtures or LED high bay fixtures, can cost-effectively reduce operating costs, increases property value and promote job retention and creation in the region.
Starting June 1, 2013 Greater Philadelphia area businesses have an opportunity to dramatically reduce the cost of commercial lighting retrofits. In addition to the discounts financing programs are also available that have a $0 out of pocket cost and generate positive cash flow in the very first month. LED fixture retrofits for commercial lighting can now actually MAKE MONEY for businesses rather than cost money.
SUMMER 2013 Discounts:
Utility Company Rebates: 20%
Federal Tax Incentive: 10%
LED Manufacturer Discounts: 10%
Specialty Grants: 10%
TOTAL Discounts: 50%
These discounts are estimated averages, and total savings are subject to each business. The Specialty Grants are available for Regional Manufacturing Companies + Minority, Women, and Veteran Owned Businesses.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter pledged to make Philadelphia the number one green city in America, in his January 2008 inaugural address. He created the Mayor's Office of Sustainability to make good on his pledge: GREENWORKS (www.phila.gov/green). Light Up Philly specifically calls out their appreciation for the leadership of Mayor Michael Nutter as well as the leadership of Philadelphia City Councilwoman Blondell Reynolds Brown. In 2012, she introduced Bill # 120428, to require commercial buildings in Philadelphia over 50,000 square feet to benchmark and disclose their energy and water consumption to the City on an annual basis. The law was approved unanimously by City Council. Benchmarking takes effect June 1, 2013 and it will be administered by the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability.
The Energy Efficient Buildings Hub (EEB Hub) is headquartered in the Philadelphia Navy Yard. EEB Hub (www.eebhub.org) commissioned a study by Econsult (www.econsult.com)to help identify the extent to which mandated building energy use disclosure in Philadelphia could foster economic activity and other benefits. Here is one of three sample obstacles to success identified in the report:
High Cost – “In the current market, most retrofits do not pay for themselves within a reasonable amount of time. While the retrofit may increase the value of the building, the rate at which the benefits are capitalized is typically either too low, too slow, or both, for the owner to be incentivized to undertake the retrofit at their own expense.”
The Light Up Philly FIX:
The Light Up Philly commercial lighting initiative, with specifically ‘The Right Discounts’ is a direct response to the High Cost hurdle that to date has stalled the adoption of energy intelligence measures in Greater Philadelphia as well as other cities and regions across the U.S.
Time will tell if the Light Up Philly program inspires other cities to look harder at LED commercial lighting as the means to reach their energy reduction and sustainability goals. Plus, corporate sponsors like Independence LED have listed sample installations (http://www.independenceled.com/light-up-philly) in the region that may inspire companies to take action.
