HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-10-08 PACKET 03.A.Oakdale Environmental Management Commission
Project Highlights — 2014
Joint Commission Meeting —October 8, 2014
Raingarden Technical Standards and Design Examples
In order to assist in meeting the city's requirements as part of the MS4 stormwater permit and
to fulfil a GreenStep Cities best practice action, the EMC created technical standards and design
examples for residential raingarden installation in the city. These standards included basic
information on percolation tests, proper sizing, and construction of the garden. There are also
examples with plant lists for pollinator - friendly and native prairie gardens. The commission is
currently evaluating locations in city parks for a demonstration raingarden location.
Commercial Building Energy Use
One of the commission's goals for 2014 was to pursue strategies that would assist commercial
buildings in reducing their energy consumption for the economic and environmental benefits to
the business and the community. In light of this goal, the EMC recommended and the City
Council approved signing a joint powers agreement with the St. Paul Port Authority to provide
Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing to Oakdale businesses. PACE loans are private
funds that loaned to a business to complete energy improvements, repayments on the loan are
then collected through a special assessment on the property. The loans are structured for
repayment so that there is an immediate positive cash flow on the project.
Oakdale also participated in a workgroup with Maplewood, Edina, St. Anthony, and North St.
Paul facilitated by the Great Plains Institute to support cities looking to work with the business
community to reduce energy use. One problem identified by the workgroup was split
incentives, where the building owner pays the costs for an energy upgrade but the tenant
receives the benefit of lower energy costs. After talking with local property owners, the city
found that split incentives are a major obstacle for commercial energy improvements in
Oakdale. Adding a green lease addendum to existing leases where both the building owner and
tenant(s) agree to the terms of how to allocate the costs /benefits of an improvement is one
strategy to remove this obstacle. As a result of Oakdale's participation in the workgroup, the
city was awarded a $5,000 grant to create template green lease addendum language.
The EMC is currently working on putting together information about PACE, other financing
programs, rebates, energy audit providers, and the green lease addendum into a
comprehensive business assistance package that can be provided to business upon request or
presented during business retention visits.
City Facility Solar
The city was awarded Made in MN rebate funding for a second solar photovoltaic system to be
installed on the city's south fire station. The 25.83 kW system will provide an average of 60% of
the building's energy use over the 25 year life of the system, saving approximately $80,000 and
585 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. The emissions reduction is the equivalent of
628,000 pounds of coal not being burned.
Tanner's Lake Cleanup Event
The commission held their 5t" annual volunteer event at Tanner's Lake this past May. There was
significantly less debris found this year than when the event was started. Next year the
commission will partner with the city's Tree Board to do native prairie plantings around the
park as part of the cleanup.
Vermicompostine Class
Through the Washington County recycling grant, the city offered a home vermicomposting class
this summer. The purpose of the class was teach residents the importance of keeping as much
food waste out of the waste stream as possible, and how food waste can be used to their
benefit by creating highly concentrated fertilizer for their gardens and household plants.
Participants viewed short video clips on vermicomposting, had a question and answer period,
and then had the opportunity to make their own home vermicomposting container complete
with live red worms.