January 27, 2017
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
City of Kingston Earns Clean Energy Community Designation for its Commitment to Cut Costs and Reduce Energy Consumption
(Kingston, N.Y.) Mayor Steve Noble is pleased to announce the City of Kingston has been designated a Clean Energy Community by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), recognizing its leadership in reducing energy use, cutting costs and driving clean energy locally.
Announced by Governor Cuomo in August, the $16 million Clean Energy Communities initiative supports local government leaders across the State to implement energy efficiency, renewable energy and sustainable development projects in their communities. Clean Energy Communities advances the Governor’s Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) strategy by demonstrating the importance of communities in helping New York reach its Clean Energy Standard of 50 percent of the state’s electricity coming from renewable energy resources by 2030.
Kingston received the designation for completing 4 of 10 high-impact clean energy actions identified by NYSERDA as part of the Clean Energy Communities initiative. In addition, the designation gives Kingston an opportunity to apply for up to $100,000 towards additional clean energy projects, with no local cost share.
“The City of Kingston has a track record for being a model of sustainability for communities across New York State and we are proud to be New York's first city to be declared a Clean Energy Community,” said Mayor Noble. “I am so proud of our staff and volunteers who have worked diligently to bring us to this point. I look forward to continuing to demonstrate that by making sustainability a priority, communities can and will thrive.”
To earn the Clean Energy Community designation, Kingston completed the following high-impact clean energy actions:
- Clean Fleets- the City of Kingston purchased two plug-in Chevy Volts as part of the NYS Aggregated Purchase of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles in Summer 2016. One car is used by the Fire Department’s Public Safety Division and other by the Police Department’s School Resource Officer.
- Benchmarking- in January 2017, the City of Kingston passed a resolution adopting Energy Benchmarking requirements for certain municipal buildings in the City of Kingston. Using EPA’s Portfolio Manager online free software, the City of Kingston will now collect, report and share building energy use on a regular basis with the public, allowing municipal officials and the public to understand the energy performance of municipal buildings relative to similar buildings nationwide. This information will be used to identify opportunities to cut costs and reduce pollution in Kingston.
- Climate Smart Communities Certification- Kingston was part of the original six communities in NYS to achieve Climate Smart Communities Certification in 2014, a statewide recognition program that recognizes communities for their climate action and leadership through a rating system. The City of Kingston is currently the highest ranking City in NYS, with a Bronze Certification.
- Energize NY Finance- in December 2015, the City of Kingston passed Local Law #3 to establish a sustainable energy loan program in the City of Kingston. This program, also known as Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Financing, allows the Energy Improvement Corporation (“EIC”), a local development corporation, acting on behalf of the City of Kingston, to make funds available to qualified property owners to pay for the cost of clean energy upgrades to their commercial or non-profit property through a special charge on their property tax bill.
For more information about the City of Kingston’s sustainability efforts, please contact Julie Noble, Environmental Education and Sustainability Coordinator for the City of Kingston, at (845) 481-7339 or at [email protected].
For more information on Clean Energy Communities, visit www.nyserda.ny.gov/cec.
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