LAWTON – Comanche County may join an Oklahoma program that provides financing to owners of commercial buildings who want to make their property more energy efficient.
The Comanche County Board of Commissioners voted Monday to postpone a decision on joining the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy program, giving the commissioners more time to study the issue.
C-PACE provides long-term, low-interest-rate financing to building owners who want to modernize their property’s energy systems, reduce energy costs, make the building more comfortable and boost asset value, according to the program’s website, www.oklahomacpace.org. The Indian Nations Council of Governments, a group of tribal and local governments, sponsors the program in Oklahoma.
“Really, it’s just a form of financing that is really beneficial to industry and businesses for economic development purposes,” said Nancy Graham, air quality program manager for INCOG. “It is a form of financing new in Oklahoma but not through the nation. There are 20 other states that have already enacted C-PACE legislation.”
In Oklahoma, C-PACE requires permission from county government before the program can become active in that county. There is no cost for counties to join the program, and INCOG administers the program on their behalf.
“We take care of working with the business owner, and they’ll apply to us – to INCOG – to me, actually,” Graham said. “We vet the project, and Oklahoma C-PACE would approve it. And that’s when we would approach the county commissioners and say, ‘This is where you need to sign.’ And it gets signed and filed in the land record at that point in time.”
C-PACE financing is repaid as an annual assessment, under a contract among the county, the lender and the property owner, according to the program’s website. Lenders send the property owner an annual bill and collect assessment payments, and counties do not bill or collect payments.
The program is available for commercial properties, including industrial buildings, agricultural property, offices and nongovernmental, tax-exempt buildings, according to the website. It is not available for government-owned buildings, single-family homes or buildings in residential zones.
C-PACE funding can be used to retrofit an existing building or as one element of the financing for a new construction development. The money must be used for eligible costs, which may fall into one of four categories: Energy efficiency, energy sources, water conservation and building resiliency.