First PA C-PACE Project: $1.5 Million For Energy & Water Efficiency In Mixed-Use Development In Philadelphia

On July 20, the Philadelphia Energy Authority, Twain Financial Partners and SHIFT Capital closed the first project in Pennsylvania to use Commercial Property-Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing.

SHIFT Capital borrowed $1,500,000 in C-PACE financing from Twain Financial to pay for energy and water efficiency upgrades to the commercial portion of a new mixed-use development in Philadelphia.

SHIFT Capital's project, J-centrel, provides new retail and workspace for local businesses, and discounted rent for tenants volunteering in the neighborhood. 

The C-PACE financing covers cost-reducing measures, including LED lighting, window replacements, energy recovery units, heat pumps, and low-flow plumbing. 

The measures reduce the building's carbon footprint by 2,700 metric tons of CO2 equivalent.

Click Here for a project summary with more information.

Philadelphia City Council passed legislation enabling C-PACE financing in Philadelphia in June 2019. 

"C-PACE is a game-changing tool that brings private sector investment to our city to create jobs, fight climate change, improve public health and help businesses save money," said Council member Derek S. Green.

C-PACE was enabled in Pennsylvania in 2018 

"We worked for years to get C-PACE across the finish line because we understood the economic and environmental benefits of this creative, market-driven funding mechanism to enable businesses to make important water conservation and energy efficiency upgrades," said Sen. John Blake (D-Lackawanna), prime sponsor of the bipartisan legislation.

"C-PACE was a key tool for rounding out our capital stack, reducing ongoing operating costs, and making our building greener," said Brian Murray, CEO and Founder of Shift Capital, the developer of J-centrel. "C-PACE provided competitively-priced financing and a long-term repayment schedule to make our efficiency improvements cash flow positive."

Emily Schapira, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Energy Authority, the Philadelphia C-PACE Program Administrator, said, "With this project, Pennsylvania C-PACE is open for business, and another step forward towards a robust, equitable clean energy economy."

The Philadelphia Energy Authority is an independent municipal authority created in 2010 to advance energy affordability and sustainability. 

PEA has facilitated over $136 million in clean energy projects in Philadelphia since launching the Philadelphia Energy Campaign in 2016, creating over 1,300 jobs. 

PEA administers the Philadelphia C-PACE program, which allows commercial property owners to borrow money for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water conservation projects.

Visit the Authority’s C-PACE Program webpage to learn more about this program.

To learn more about the program statewide and how your community can get involved, visit DEP’s C-PACE webpage or the Pennsylvania C-PACE Program webpage.

[Posted: July 20, 2020]  PA Environment Digest