Berkeley Businesses Honored at Energy Smart Awards Ceremony

Twenty-nine Berkeley businesses were honored on January 30 for benchmarking their energy use, a critical step toward saving money and making Berkeley a more sustainable city. 

The recipients of the Energy Smart Awards, who were congratulated by Mayor Tom Bates and Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner, account for approximately 150 buildings. They included most of the city’s grocery stores, a hospital and, for the first time, multi-family housing units. 

Reducing the greenhouse gas emissions of commercial buildings is an essential step for Berkeley to achieve the goals of the Climate Action Plan, whose creation was initiated by voters in 2006. Among all buildings in Berkeley, commercial buildings' energy use accounts for 52 percent of greenhouse gas emissions.

Energy benchmarking is simple and the benefits are substantial. By uploading a building's PG&E data into the free online tracker, ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager, businesses can learn about their energy use and qualify for the annual Energy Smart Awards. Businesses use the benchmarking to identify ways to save energy and money while creating a more comfortable building environment.

“Benchmarking our buildings with Portfolio Manager not only allows us to compare energy use between stores but is also used as a tool to identify potential areas for improvement,” said Greg Michaelson, Energy Projects Analyst for Safeway, Inc. 

While the movement toward benchmarking is well underway in Berkeley, it is increasingly required by state law. As of January 1, AB 1103 required commercial buildings over 10,000 square feet to disclose energy benchmarks when they sell, refinance, or lease their property. On July 1, the requirement will expand to buildings over 5,000 square feet. 

Benchmarking uses ENERGY STAR® Portfolio Manager software, developed by the EPA, to track energy use and provides buildings a 1-100 energy efficiency score relative to other similar sized buildings. Benchmarking helps building owners, managers, facility staff and tenants better understand how to manage energy use, save money, and reduce greenhouse gas emission. 

Thursday night’s event was hosted by the East Bay Environmental Network (EBEN) and the Building Owners and Management Association of the East Bay (BOMA East Bay) and included businesses and the mayors from the cities of Berkeley, Emeryville and Oakland. A map of the Energy Smart Award winners is posted at: www.cityofberkeley.info/energysmartaward

2014 Energy Smart Awards Winners

CITY OF BERKELEY                                                                                

2150 Shattuck Avenue & Beacon Ventures    

Alta Bates Summit Medical Center

Ashby Stage          

Bancroft Hotel  

Bayer Healthcare

Berkeley Bowl West            

Berkeley Chamber of Commerce 

Berkeley City College      

Berkeley Marina DoubleTree Hotel             

Berkeley Safeway                         

Berkeley Unified School District      

Berkeley Whole Foods Market      

Berkwood Hedge School

City of Berkeley 

David Brower Center                  

Ed Roberts Campus    

Golden Bear Center    

Graduate Theological Union     

Grocery Outlet Bargain Market 

Hotel Shattuck Plaza      

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory        

LJ Kruse Company

Meyer Sound Laboratories          

Oxford Plaza                                        

Sawtooth Building        

Square One Management

Wareham Development