Action 2 -
Make no/low cost indoor lighting and operational changes in city-owned/school buildings to reduce energy costs.
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Buildings and Lighting
1 . Efficient Existing Public Buildings:
Benchmark energy and water usage, identify savings opportunities in consultation with state programs, utilities and others to implement cost-effective energy and sustainability improvements.
Action 3 -
Invest in larger energy efficiency projects through performance contracting or other funding or through smaller retro-commissioning/retrofit projects in city-owned/school buildings.
Action 5 -
Document that the new construction or major remodeling of a public building has met the SB 2030 energy standard or has met or qualified under a green building or energy framework.
Action 7 -
Install for one or more city-owned/school buildings one of the following efficiency measures:
3 . New Green Buildings:
Construct new buildings to meet or qualify under a green building framework.
Action 1 -
Require by city policy that new city-owned buildings be built using the SB 2030 energy standard and/or a green building framework.
4 . Efficient Outdoor Lighting and Signals:
Improve the efficiency and quality of street lighting, traffic signals and outdoor public lighting.
Action 1 -
Require energy efficient, Dark-Sky compliant new or replacement outdoor lighting fixtures on city-owned/private buildings and facilities.
Action 2 -
Purchase LEDs for all future street lighting and traffic signals.
Transportation
12 . Mobility Options:
Increase active transportation and alternatives to single-occupancy car travel.
Action 1 -
Increase walking, biking and transit use by one or more of the following means:
13 . Efficient City Fleets:
Implement a city fleet investment, operations and maintenance plan.
Action 3 -
Phase-in operational changes, equipment changes including electric vehicles, and no-idling practices for city or local transit fleets.
Action 6 -
Retrofit city diesel engines or install auxiliary power units and/or electrified parking spaces, utilizing Project GreenFleet or the like.
Environmental Management
15 . Sustainable Purchasing:
Adopt environmentally preferable purchasing policies and practices to improve health and environmental outcomes.
Action 1 -
Adopt a sustainable purchasing policy or administrative guidelines/practices directing that the city purchase at least:
Action 2 -
Purchase energy used by city government - via the municipal utility, green tags, community solar garden, 3rd party - with a higher renewable percentage than required by Minnesota law.
Action 3 -
Establish purchasing preferences that support local, Minority, Disability, and Women-Owned businesses and, working with a local business association, develop a list of locally-produced products and suppliers for common purchases.
Action 4 -
Require purchase of U.S. EPA WaterSense-certified products.
Action 5 -
Set minimum sustainability standards to reduce the impact of your concrete use, asphalt, roadbed aggregate, or other construction materials.
Action 8 -
Use national green standards/guidelines for purchasing/investments such as cleaning products, furniture, flooring/coatings.
16 . Community Forests and Soils:
Add city tree and plant cover that conserves topsoils and increases community health, wealth, quality of life.
Action 4 -
Maximize tree planting along your main downtown street or throughout the city.
17 . Stormwater Management:
Minimize the volume of and pollutants in rainwater runoff by maximizing green infrastructure.
Action 5 -
Adopt and implement guidelines or design standards/incentives for at least one of the following stormwater infiltration/reuse practices:
Action 6 -
Improve smart-salting by reducing chloride use in winter maintenance and dust suppressants to prevent permanent surfacewater and groundwater pollution.
20 . Efficient Water and Wastewater Systems:
Assess and improve city drinking water and wastewater systems and related facilities.
Action 2 -
Plan and budget for motor maintenance and upgrades to assure the most energy efficient, durable and appropriate equipment is available when upgrades or breakdowns occur.
Action 4 -
Optimize energy and chemical use at drinking water/wastewater facilities and decrease chloride in wastewater discharges.
22 . Sustainable Consumption and Waste:
Increase waste prevention, reuse and recycling, moving to a lower-consumption, more cyclical, biological approach to materials management.
Action 1 -
Improve city operations and procurement to prevent and reuse, recycle and compost waste from all public facilities (including libraries, parks, schools, municipal health care facilities), and minimize use of toxics and generation of hazardous waste.
Action 4 -
Publicize, promote and use the varied businesses/services collecting and marketing used, repaired and rental consumer goods, especially electronics, in the city/county.
23 . Local Air Quality:
Prevent generation of local air contaminants so as to improve community health.
Action 5 -
Install, assist with and promote publicly available EV charging stations or public fueling stations for alternative fuel vehicles.
Resilient Economic and Community Development
26 . Renewable Energy:
Remove barriers to and encourage installation of renewable energy generation capacity.
Action 5 -
Install a public sector/municipally-owned renewable energy technology, such as solar electric (PV), wind, biomass, solar hot water/air, or micro-hydro.
29 . Climate Adaptation and Community Resilience:
Plan and prepare for extreme weather, adapt to changing climatic conditions, and foster stronger community connectedness and social and economic vitality.
Action 5 -
Protect public buildings and natural/constructed infrastructure to reduce physical damage and sustain their function during extreme weather events.
Action 7 -
Protect water supply and wastewater treatment facilities to reduce physical damage and sustain their function during extreme weather events.
Action 8 -
Improve local energy resilience by minimizing fuel poverty, installing distributed renewable energy systems, and developing microgrids that can improve energy system resiliency.