Policies

• Establish LEED/energy efficiency standards for all new municipal buildings and major renovations

Weatherization and insulation

• Perform a fan pressurization test to identify air leaks
• Mitigate leakage by sealing leaks with foam, caulking or other sealants (repeat fan pressurization test to verify leakage reduction)
• Perform an infrared scan to identify/measure thermal and air leaks in the building envelope 
• Insulate areas identified as having inadequate building insulation
• Replace old windows with newer energy efficient ones - consider use of glazing, films and shading devices to reduce solar gain 

Lighting

• Conduct a lighting inventory and retrofit in all municipal buildings
  •  Replace incandescent lamps with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFL) - they use 75% less energy and last several times longer reducing maintenance/replacement costs
  • Replace standard T-12 fluorescent bulbs with magnetic ballasts with T-8 bulbs with electric ballasts. T-8 bulbs use about 40% less energy and typically have a 2 to 4 year payback period
  • Energy efficient lighting also emits less heat, lowering building cooling loads in the warmer months
• Develop a plan and install occupancy sensors in areas with intermittent traffic and large lighting loads. Set them to turn off after 5 to 7 minutes.
• Promote the use of task daylight and task and space lighting 
• Replace outdoor and parking lot/garage lighting with CFL or LED lamps
• Replace old/traditional exit signs with LED or photo-luminescent signs
• Install timers for outdoor lighting and minimize "on" time. Adjust regularly throughout the year

Heating, air conditioning, ventilation

• Use solar thermal water for water heating
• Consider retro-commissioning existing municipal buildings to ensure that building systems are functioning optimally. Start with your most energy intensive buildings - those that consume the most energy per square foot
• Regularly clean condensing coils of rooftop units

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Additional resources and best practices

My Business: Saving Energy. by Madison Gas and Electric

Local best practices

• Euclid has retrofitted 10 city buildings--more than any other Northeast Ohio city--to make them more energy efficient
• Independence has retrofitted its recreation center by installing skylights and dimmer switches on lights, and has built out its engineering department using all recycled materials
• 21 cities in Northeast Ohio have retrofitted or are in the midst of retrofitting city buildings, and 12 more have built or are planning to build new green buildings