HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021/11/03 - ADMIN - Agenda Packets - Environment & Sustainability Commission - Regular Environment & sustainability commission meeting
November 3, 2021
6:30 p.m.
All board members/commissioners will participate in this meeting at the Community Room, St.
Louis Park City Hall, 5005 Minnetonka Blvd., St. Louis Park, MN 55416.
Agenda
1.Call to order
a.Roll Call
2.Approval of minutes (October 6, 2021)
3.Business (6:40 p.m.)
a.Climate emergency declaration discussion (with Councilmember Kraft)
b.Review draft Tariffed on Bill (“TOB”) pilot program letter to Public Utilities
Commission
4.Staff updates
5.Workgroup and/or project updates
a.EJ workgroup and “parking lot items” next steps
6.City Council written reports
7.Environmental Justice open discussion
8.Upcoming/proposed events
a.ESC retreat, December 5, 2021 (likely date)
b.ESC elections, January 2022
9.Adjournment
Future meeting/event dates:
•Next meeting: December 1, 2021
•ESC annual retreat: December 5, 2021 (likely date)
If you need special accommodations or have questions about the meeting, please call Emily Ziring at 952-924-2191 or the
administration department at 952-924-2525.
St. Louis Park City Hall • 5005 Minnetonka Blvd., St. Louis Park, MN 55416
www.stlouispark.org • Phone: 952.924.2500 • TTY: 952.924.2518
December 6, 2021
Mr. Will Seuffert
Executive Secretary
Minnesota Public Utilities Commission
121 7th Place East, Suite 350
St. Paul, Minnesota 55101-2147
Re: Docket No. G-008/M-21-377
Dear Mr. Seuffert:
The City of St. Louis Park appreciates the opportunity to comment on the petition by CenterPoint Energy
and the City of Minneapolis to introduce a Tariffed On-Bill (TOB) financing pilot program.
Like Minneapolis, St. Louis Park has an ambitious climate action plan with goals that cannot be achieved
without piloting creative new initiatives. In order to meet our city’s goals, 9,000 single-family
households will need to complete retrofits/weatherization projects and 7,200 households will need to
replace natural gas equipment with high efficiency models by 2030. A TOB pilot in the CenterPoint
Energy territory would provide a much-needed additional tool to enable local homeowners and renters
to invest in these energy upgrades.
St. Louis Park housing stock is almost 50% rental properties, a rental rate higher than Hennepin County.
In St. Louis Park 38.2% of renter households are considered cost burdened; low- and moderate-income
tenants are increasingly paying more than 30% of their income on rent and utilities. Meanwhile, many
small rental property owners face rising costs as well as financial pressures from COVID-19. The TOB
pilot is an excellent way to weatherize homes, including and especially those occupied by low- and
moderate-income renters and homeowners—and it is thoughtfully designed to reduce barriers to
participation in traditional CIP programs, including the removal of income requirements or credit checks
for program applicants.
We support CenterPoint Energy and the City of Minneapolis’s leadership and look forward to promoting
the pilot to our residents to reduce energy burden; increase property values; improve resident health,
safety and comfort; and bring our city closer to meeting its goals.
Sincerely,
Jake Spano
Mayor
City of St. Louis Park
CC: City of St. Louis Park Environment and Sustainability Commission members