HVAC Contracting

Hillsboro School District Partners with Ameresco for Efficiency Upgrades

District embraces energy saving initiatives to upgrade learning environment

FRAMINGHAM, Mass., and HILLSBORO, Ore. — Ameresco Inc. and the Hillsboro School District announced that they have begun work on a nearly $3.5 million energy savings performance contract (ESPC) to improve 13 schools and increase their operational efficiency. Approximately a third of the project cost, $1.3 million, is funded through Oregon Senate Bill 1149 (SB1149), which is provided by a public-purpose charge from electrical customers to fund K-12 school improvements.

“Partnering with Ameresco under an ESPC has made it possible for us to implement significant energy efficiency upgrades in our schools, and to make improvements to the overall learning environment without an additional burden to our taxpayers,” said Adam Stewart, chief financial officer, Hillsboro School District. “The efficiency upgrades are expected to deliver an estimated $137,000 in annual cost savings, while improving the comfort of the facilities for our students and staff.”

Some of the energy saving projects include: heating and air conditioning controls upgrades, and retro-commissioning; installing CO2-based ventilation control; installation of building automation systems; installing natural gas water heaters to replace electric water heaters; lighting retrofits; occupancy and daylighting sensors for lighting control; adding variable speed pumps, upgrades to electrical service to increase capacity; and identifying district-wide water saving measures.

“Ameresco commends the Hillsboro School District for its commitment to academic excellence and for embracing a fiscally-responsible solution to implement a wide-range of enhancements at its schools,” said Louis P. Maltezos, executive vice president, Ameresco. “In addition to the budget-neutral ESPC, Ameresco also was able to identify a number of efficiency measures that qualified for reimbursement by Oregon’s SB1149, and helped the district secure a low-interest loan to finance the project.”

The ESPC involves upgrades at the following schools: Brookwood Elementary School, Century High School, Farmington View Elementary School, Hillsboro High School, J.W. Poynter Middle School, Miller Education Center West, Mooberry Elementary School, North Plains Elementary School, Orenco Elementary School, Patterson Elementary School, R.A. Brown Middle School, Reedville Elementary School, and W.L. Henry Elementary School.

In addition to enhancing the identified schools, the efficiency measures and upgrades also support the district’s sustainability goals. The environmental benefits from implementing the energy efficiency measures include an annual reduction of approximately 790 tons of CO2 greenhouse gas emissions.

The project is expected to be completed by year-end 2016.

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