Cleveland, OH: Energy performance

Better Buildings Challenge Partners strive to decrease portfolio-wide source energy use intensity (EUI) and to increase the percent improvement compared to a set baseline. Cleveland's portfolio consists of approximately 130 buildings and over 5 million square feet.

*Cleveland has improved energy performance by 14% from a 2010 baseline. Energy consumption during 2020 was significantly lower than a typical year since COVID-19 disruptions resulted in temporary building closures and reduced occupancy for half of the year. Even though usage increased between 2020 and 2021 with return to full occupancy, the ongoing Capital Improvement spending for facility improvements and energy savings, are continuing to have a positive impact on the downward EUI trend.

Looking at the percent improvement in energy performance across all properties can provide insight into how an organization is saving energy. Cleveland has achieved energy performance improvement of 6% or more at 51 of its reported facilities compared to baseline, with 31 facilities reporting over 15% improvement.

Property-level energy performance metrics, including EUI and percent improvement to date, are critical to track progress over time and identify opportunities for additional energy savings. Cleveland's portfolio consists of facilities with a wide range of baseline EUI values, most of which are from 0 to 400 kBtu/sq. ft. The majority of facilities have shown improvements since 2010. Facilities located near or below the 0% axis, especially present good opportunities for further savings. While Cleveland has been making effective use of its enterprise energy data management system, and has implemented energy efficiency measures through capital improvements and separate energy conversation projects, a more targeted facility energy management approach with robust funding is required in order to achieve performance goals. Achieving the 6% reduction in a single year to meet the interim 20% reduction goal presents a big challenge with existing funding structure.