Auburn Hills makes energy efficiency a priority

The city of Auburn Hills has completed an energy efficiency project that has already brought down utility costs and will likely find other savings by next year.Dan Brisson, the project manager and facilities and roads manager for the city’s Department of Public Works, says with the steps taken to decrease electric use in city buildings, “we expect our investment will pay for itself.”The changes come at a cost of $97,553, about half of it paid by an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant from the state of Michigan.The replacement of windows and insulation and going with 18-watt LED bulbs instead of 75-watt fluorescents at the library is already saving money, about $5,000 a year, Brisson says.The recent completion of a centralized heating, cooling and ventilation system is expected to save more tax dollars and also save the environment from energy by-products. In addition, meters and a web-based monitoring system will track usage and help identify energy waste.”We’ll probably monitor over the 2011 year, and then pick up which buildings are using the most electricity per square foot,” Brisson says. Many city buildings are historical, in existence since the town was settled.”Those buildings are the ones where you might think that there are areas where we can save energy,” Brisson says. “But even some of the newer ones can have energy efficiency problems.”Source: Dan Brisson, facilities and roads manager for Auburn  Hills Department of Public WorksWriter: Kim North Shine