Not all energy-efficiency projects are created equal – some are much more costly than others. For more expensive projects, here’s a financing option you may have overlooked.
Property-assessed clean energy (PACE) allows facilities to borrow money from their local government and then pay it back over time on the building’s property tax bill.
One success story
The PACE program is currently available in 31 states – and it has helped many commercial facilities.
A Hilton hotel in Los Angeles recently used PACE to fund $7 million worth of sustainable upgrades.
The hotel was aging and in desperate need of several upgrades, such as a new HVAC system, new elevators, restroom fixtures and more efficient lighting.
So the firm did a sweeping upgrade of its building – and PACE covered 100% of the upfront funding. Now the hotel will pay off the costs over the next 20 years.
The project had a 78% return on investment, and it helped the hotel save $800,000 in utility costs. The efficiency projects also increased the property value of the hotel by $30 million.
