City of Bloomington Passes Green Building Ordinance

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 26, 2009

For more information, please contact:
Danny Lopez, Communications Director, City of Bloomington, 349-CITY, [lopezd@bloomington.in.gov|mailto:lopezd@bloomington.in.gov]




Bloomington, IN - The City of Bloomington has passed the City's first Green Building Ordinance, making Bloomington one of few cities in the state of Indiana to incorporate energy-efficiency standards into its municipal code.

Authored by Council Members Isabel Piedmont-Smith and Dave Rollo in collaboration with City staff, the ordinance commissions energy-efficiency analyses on 15 City buildings and mandates the buildings be brought up to LEED-Silver standards, assuming construction costs be offset by savings within a 10-year period. It also ensures that future City construction be built to LEED-Silver standards.

"Ours is one of the few ordinances in the country that requires application of LEED-Existing Building: Operations & Maintenance standards for existing buildings," said Piedmont-Smith. "Since the City is not planning any major new construction projects soon, we felt that applying the ordinance to existing buildings was the best way to have a positive impact."

The ordinance is the latest in the City's sustainability efforts. Just last year, Bloomington was named Indiana Green Community of the Year by the Indiana Association of Cities and Towns (IACT) for its progressive approach, which has included:

• The establishment of Team Process, a multi-departmental team that explores organization-wide efficiencies.
• Development of EverGreen Village Affordable Housing Subdivision, the City's first completely green-built neighborhood.
• The establishment of the Economic and Sustainable Development (ESD) Department.
• Creation of the Sustainable City initiative, a partnership between the ESD Department and the City's Commission on Sustainability to promote economic enhancement through sustainable development.
• The acquisition by the City of nearly 150 acres of green space.

"This ordinance is another step in our ongoing commitment to our long-term sustainability," said Mayor Mark Kruzan. "We continue to strive to be better environmental stewards, and identifying energy efficiencies is critical since, in the long run, they reduce our operating costs and decrease our carbon footprint."

For more information on the City's sustainability efforts, please contact Adam Wason, Assistant Director of Economic Development for Small Business and Sustainable Development, at 349-3419 or via email at [wasona@bloomington.in.gov|mailto:wasona@bloomington.in.gov].

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