In This Issue:

Key Announcements
Highlights from a Terrific 2018 Better Buildings Summit
Spotlight on Partner Successes

Key Announcements

DUE September 17th: The Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance has issued an RFP to fund four to five innovative energy efficiency projects in the Southeast. Let us know if you submit an application! Partial scholarships are available to forthcoming regional lead and healthy housing conferences for public agencies, health advocacy organizations, universities, and small businesses. Find conference information and email Steve Weil for more information on scholarships.

• Springboard to Opportunities, a non-profit advocacy organization for families in affordable housing, is participating in Magnolia Mother's Trust, a pilot initiative of guaranteed income for affordable housing residents. As a result, 15 Jackson, Mississippi families residing in multifamily affordable properties will receive $1,000 per month for 12 months, and evaluators will track their progress in reaching goals.
• Portfolio Manager® has updated its performance metrics to reflect the latest market data. This should not affect partners' progress toward their 20% BBC reduction goal, as any EUI changes will impact both baseline and current year EUIs, but it may affect 1-100 ENERGY STAR® scores. Click the "refresh metrics" button to see updated metrics in your dashboard after logging in.

Highlights from a Terrific 2018 Better Buildings Summit!

The 2018 Better Buildings Summit was an unparalleled opportunity for BBC partners to network with leaders in energy and water efficiency. For the first time ever, the Summit combined with the Federal Energy Management Program's (FEMP) Energy Exchange, expanding the technical sessions available to partners and presenting new networking opportunities. More than 3,000 attendees hailed from all parts of the country, representing all building sectors.

On Tuesday, Tina Brake from multifamily partner Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) hosted Summit attendees on a tour of several facilities, including its LEED Silver Certified Campus and its Heritage View property. The CMHA campus features a 1 MW solar field on a remediated brownfield and urban farm and greenhouses, where CMHA provides urban agriculture workforce development training.

Solar field at Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority.

Residents grow fresh produce that is then donated to CMHA properties while gaining skills and contacts which they then bring into their communities, in some cases in the form of their own business. Tour attendees also visited Heritage View Homes, a multi-phase development that was planned with walking paths, green infrastructure, rooftop solar panels, and multiple housing types.

Wednesday kicked off with the annual Multifamily Meet-Up, a chance to hear what multifamily peers are doing and receive recognition for achieving program milestones. Crystal Bergemann, HUD's acting BBC Multifamily Sector Lead, congratulated partners on benchmarking more utility data each year and demonstrating more than $25 million in cost savings since the start of the BBC Multifamily sector. Michael Freedberg, HUD's Senior Advisor for High-Performance Building, discussed several new initiatives from HUD, including a technical assistance engagement with the Puerto Rico Public Housing Administration to analyze the technical and economic feasibility of installing solar with battery storage across its portfolio. Attendees headed to a networking reception after a full day of sessions, followed by a multifamily sector dinner at Zocalo Tequileria in Cleveland's hip East Fourth neighborhood.

On Thursday, Maria Vargas, DOE's Director of the Better Buildings Challenge, recognized partners for their achievements, including multifamily partner Jersey City Housing Authority, for achieving 26% portfolio-wide energy savings in just six years! She also recognized multifamily partner The Tower Companies for setting a new energy reduction goal after surpassing its initial BBC goal in 2016 with 21% energy savings. A number of multifamily partners presented on topics ranging from capacity building to disaster resilience and recovery planning.

Stephen Cea of Jersey City Housing Authority accepts BBC Goal Achiever award from Maria Vargas of DOE.

Some highlights:

Julie Klump from POAH introduced their Basis of Design tool, which has allowed POAH to standardize products across its portfolio, simplifying maintenance and reducing costs. LuAnn Dahlman from NOAA presented the U.S. Climate Explorer, which allows users to view weather patterns and hazards for their building portfolio.

Vlada Kenniff from NYCHA discussing the PHA's solar initiatives.

• Jenna Smith from King County Housing Authority used a Sustainability Integration Framework to describe the importance of effective and constant communication with residents, as well as operations and maintenance staff, throughout energy efficiency projects.

Couldn't make it to the Summit this year? All presentation slides will be uploaded to the Better Buildings Solution Center shortly. Also, you're invited to register for a "Greatest Hits" webinar on September 18, 2018 which will revisit some of this year's most valuable sessions.

Spotlight on Partner Successes

Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation maximized three local rebate programs to drastically improve the energy efficiency of Alexander Residence, a 12-story building with 179 units. By leveraging multiple rebates, TNDC paid only $1,000 for over $570,000 of upgrades. Trinity Management hired a third-party benchmarking provider and engaged its property managers across its portfolio of 7,000 residential units to drive energy efficiency and progress toward its energy reduction goal. Trinity prepares quarterly utility analyses for each property manager to guide conversations about opportunities for additional savings. Read more about Trinity Management.

TNDC's Alexander Residence