In January the League of Women Voters of Evanston communicated support for the Healthy Buildings Ordinance to Evanston’s City Council. The ordinance has received support from the community, including the Environment Board, Utilities Commission, and Climate Action Evanston, as well as opposition. As of this writing, the ordinance has not proceeded to a final vote. So, what does this ordinance include?
The Healthy Buildings Ordinance (HBO) introduces building performance standards over a 25-year period for about 500 of Evanston’s largest buildings, including single-owner buildings greater than 20,000 square feet, and condos and co-ops greater than 50,000 square feet. Buildings in Evanston account for approximately 80% of Evanston’s total greenhouse gas emissions, and buildings covered by the ordinance account for almost half of that 80%. All of the buildings covered under the HBO must already comply with the city’s Benchmarking Ordinance, and the HBO is a proposed amendment to the Benchmarking Ordinance. It is based on model ordinance language developed by the Institute for Market Transformation, language that has also been used in Denver, Boston, Cambridge, Seattle, Montgomery County in Maryland, and the state of Colorado.
The U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy defines building performance standards as “performance-based standards aimed at reducing energy use and operational costs in existing buildings and improving overall comfort, durability, and resilience for building occupants by setting targets for energy or other performance metrics.” Evanston’s HBO would implement building performance standards for the 500 largest buildings gradually over the next 25 years, with the following requirements by the year 2050:
- A maximum Energy Use Intensity (a measure of energy efficiency) to be established for each different type of building.
- Zero onsite greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
- Any electricity procured must be generated onsite or procured from 100% renewable sources.
In addition to 2050 requirements, there would be interim standards set by two new public bodies every 5 years, to ensure progress. These two public bodies, described below, would be charged with detailed rulemaking to determine interim standards, final energy use intensity goals, and alternative compliance pathways for different building types:
- A 7-member Healthy Buildings Accountability Board responsible for determining equitable rules and identifying equity-, financially-, and technically- challenged buildings that may qualify for funding support and/or alternative compliance.
- A 5-member Technical Advisory Committee consisting of building and energy experts that would focus on technical feasibility and detailed metrics for each of the interim and final standards.
The HBO was intended to be supported by a $10.4 million Department of Energy grant awarded to Evanston in 2024, which would fund additional Sustainability staff to help each building navigate technical paths and financing sources. The new federal administration has introduced uncertainty around federal grants, but the city is working to identify ways to implement building performance standards if grant funding does not come through.
Concerns about costs have been expressed by Evanston’s two school districts. City representatives are meeting with school district leaders to discuss how their concerns can be addressed with alternative compliance pathways, and to communicate that the city has no intention of bankrupting the school districts. Opposition to the ordinance has been voiced by Northwestern and owners of multiple large buildings, citing retrofit cost concerns. Discussions with some of these stakeholders are ongoing, including education about plans to include practicality and fairness in rulemaking. Many buildings will need to replace equipment over the next 25 years due to end-of-life anyway, so the actual cost of the ordinance would be the difference between replacement with similar equipment and replacement with heat pump technology and building efficiency upgrades. Rebates, state incentives, and financing from sources such as the Illinois Climate Bank would help.
Our League supported the HBO because it is consistent with one of our three program pillars: “Climate Crisis and Environmental Protection: The League believes that climate change is a serious threat facing our nation and our planet. We advocate for policies to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts, including promoting renewable energy sources, reducing reliance on fossil fuels and reducing waste…” As of this writing, the fate of the HBO and the DOE grant are uncertain, but building performance standards are expected to ultimately become part of Evanston’s CARP (Climate Action and Resilience Plan) program in some way.
More background information on the HBO is available on the City of Evanston's website.