City of Portland Proposed High Performance Green Building Policy

High performance green building presents one of the best solutions to improve environmental performance while strengthening the local economy and keeping buildings affordable in the long term. Recognizing the many benefits of green building, in 2007, Portland City Council directed the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability to develop policy options to improve the environmental performance of commercial and residential buildings community-wide. The resulting proposed High Performance Green Building Policy also addresses City Council's goal to identify steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent from 1990 levels by 2050.

The proposed High Performance Green Building Policy seeks to accomplish the following goals for buildings and the sites they occupy in the City of Portland:

• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.
• Maximize energy efficiency and cost savings.
• Keep housing and commercial buildings affordable over time.
• Decrease consumption of potable water, especially during summer months.
• Increase on-site stormwater management.
• Reduce waste during construction and operation.
• Improve indoor environmental quality, occupant health and productivity.
• Increase the number of local living-wage jobs.

The proposed policy provides incentives and technical assistance for projects that incorporate advanced green building measures as described below:

• For new commercial and multifamily construction projects, the policy proposes a green building "feebate"-a market-based instrument that combines a fee for conventional construction, a waiver option for moderate green improvements and a reward for high performance green building projects.

• For new single-family residential construction, the policy proposes a performance target for a percentage of new homes that are built to green building standards.

• For existing commercial buildings, the policy proposes disclosure of building performance in the areas of energy usage, water usage and stormwater management. The building performance measures would identify buildings that have the greatest potential to improve performance and could help prospective buyers and tenants make informed decisions.

• Disclosure of building performance measures was also considered for existing single-family residential buildings, but stakeholder input highlighted the need to develop much better financing options for homeowners than are currently available. As a result, no requirements are proposed for existing homes at this time, and instead the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability is developing a large-scale fund to accelerate green building upgrades to existing buildings.  More information on the fund is available at www.portlandonline.com/bps/cleanenergy.

A detailed policy proposal, fact sheet, Q&As, economic assessment report and press release are available.  If you have any questions concerning the content of the policy proposal, please email gbpolicy@ci.portland.or.us.

Thank you to all who submitted comments during the public comment period from December 4th, 2008, through January 20th, 2009.  In total, 106 public comments were received with over half in support fo the policy, one-quarter expressing that the policy accomplishes too little, and 16% concerned about too much change.  The Bureau of Planning and Sustainability is currently refining the proposed policy based on the comments received. 

In April 2009, the Bureau fo Planning and Sustainability released a draft Climate Action Plan (www.portlandonline.com/bps/climate) and is taking comment through July 13, 2009.  This plan is intended to serve as a road map to reach the City's greenhouse gas emission goals, including reducing emissions from energy use in buildings.  To support these goals, the proposed High Performance Green Building Policy will be brought to City Council after the Climate Action Plan is considered.

To receive emails regarding updates to the High Performance Green Building Policy, please submit a contact form (you'll be asked to join portlandonline.com, the City of Portland's official Web site.  Read about the benefits of joining POL here).