Bloomington: Municipal Investment Fund Grant Supports Planning for Reliable, Affordable Building Upgrades

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The City of Bloomington, in partnership with the Indiana Energy Independence Fund, has received a $250,000 Municipal Investment Fund (MIF) grant to advance its newly created Bloomington Energy Works program, which offers free energy audits and provides educational opportunities on the benefits of energy efficiency and clean energy projects.

The Municipal Investment Fund is a 50-state strategy launched by Coalition for Green Capital (CGC) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability USA (ICLEI USA) to empower communities to use public/private investing to accelerate the development and construction of smart energy infrastructure projects across the country.

Bloomington Energy Works will drive a public-private partnership plan to develop finance ready clean power and energy efficiency projects. The program will use a 'whole community approach' to accelerate the development of a project pipeline that grows the local economy, lowers energy costs, and builds grid resilience. Further, participation in this program opens the door to potential $2 million in additional funding to accelerate energy projects that benefit Bloomington residents and businesses.

"Preparing Bloomington for the future means strengthening our infrastructure, lowering costs for residents, and supporting good local jobs," said Mayor Kerry Thomson. "We're proud to have been selected by the Coalition for Green Capital and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability to participate in the Municipal Investment Fund program and receive a $250,000 grant. This partnership gives us the tools to plan and deliver projects that make daily life more reliable, affordable, and efficient for everyone who lives and works here."

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Bloomington Energy Works offers free energy audits to developers and large commercial, manufacturing, nonprofit, and academic institution building owners located within the city limits. The audits will be completed by Donovan Energy, an energy efficiency consultant, on a first come, first serve basis. The audits will result in a list of impactful energy conservation measures tailored to each site plan review or building's energy consumption such as HVAC optimization, heat pump HVAC upgrades, LED lighting upgrades, solar system installations, etc. Building owners will be provided information about available incentives and a complete financial analysis to understand the return on investments. Sign up for a free energy audit by visiting the Bloomington Energy Works' website and filling out the application.

Additionally, Bloomington Energy Works will conduct a new public outreach campaign called Energy Navigator!, in partnership with Electrify Indiana, to promote energy efficiency solutions to Bloomington residents. Electrify Indiana will train volunteers to conduct a door to door campaign and give group presentations as well as organize show and tell open houses. To sign up to volunteer or learn about dates and times of events, visit the Bloomington Energy Works website.

"We are grateful that the Coalition for Green Capital and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability chose our community from 114 applicants because we brought them a smart plan to increase renewable energy and energy efficient projects that both benefits the entire community and can leverage every public and private dollar spent," said Shawn Miya, Assistant Director of Sustainability. "These resources will help us fund the next phase in planning that will result in funding shovel-ready projects that will bring investments to our community, lower cost, protect residents' health and build local resilience in the face of rising energy costs impacting our community and others like ours across the country."

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Bloomington was selected by ICLEI USA because of the potential impacts that the projects would have directly for the community as well as the expected attractiveness the project would have for both future grants and private investments. By receiving the grant, Bloomington will develop a smart, competitive and ultimately cost-effective plan that would be a win-win for both the community as well as potential investors.

Richard Kauffman, the CEO of the Coalition for Green Capital, said, "We are honored to provide funding to communities across the United States under the MIF program so they can take initial steps toward bringing America clean, affordable energy in this time of crisis. We congratulate the winners of this vigorous competition. They are real heroes."

"This funding is about unlocking local leadership and moving forward the kinds of projects that communities have been ready to deliver for years," said Saharnaz Mirzazad, Executive Director of ICLEI USA. "These awards show how public-private partnerships can lead to real progress on energy, infrastructure, and economic resilience. These projects make communities safer, lower energy costs, and meet local needs head-on."

For more information about the grant, or to speak about the project, please reach out to Shawn Miya, Assistant Director of Sustainability, at [email protected].

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