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tweetLafayette, CO—Colorado C-PACE today announced that Cinsique, LLC, a Denver-based commercial real estate investment company, will use C-PACE financing to upgrade its 30,954 square-foot office investment property at 2727 Bryant Street, Denver.
The project, managed by Building Energy Performance, a Colorado-based C-PACE project development firm specializing in energy efficiency improvements, is projected to reduce the building’s energy use by 42 percent. FirstBank provided $550,000 in C-PACE financing and LONG Building Technologies will install HVAC upgrades and the building energy control system.
Built in 1974, the six-story office building had already undergone improvements by the previous owners, who invested $500,000 for a new entry façade and upgrades to the restrooms, cafeteria, lobby, common area, and suite renovations. Cinsique, LLC, which purchased the property in 2012, decided the time was right to upgrade the building’s lighting, controls, and HVAC equipment with more energy-efficient technologies. To further improve the building’s energy efficiency, a new insulated roof will be installed. These improvements are, over their expected useful life, forecast to yield energy cost savings exceeding $473,000, in addition to significant operations and maintenance savings.
“Our experience with C-PACE has been overwhelmingly positive,” said Darlene Arber, the owner of Cinsique, LLC. “The program enabled us to finance 100% of these much-needed capital improvements, and Building Energy Performance was very knowledgeable, thorough, and communicative throughout the project development process. As a result, we own a more valuable property and our tenants will have a more comfortable work environment.”
John Bernhardt of Building Energy Performance said, “C-PACE provides building owners with access to long-term, fixed-rate and low-risk capital. That’s exactly what this property needed to update its key infrastructure and improve the tenant experience.” He added, “We’re seeing ever greater interest from property owners across the state in C-PACE financing and will continue to develop high-value projects tailored to our clients’ goals.”
Financing for the project was provided by FirstBank, a Colorado-based institution with over 115 locations in Colorado, Arizona, and California. Kellen Dick of FirstBank said, “This is now our fourth project with the C-PACE program. We are pleased to be able to offer C-PACE financing to our customers and to continue to invest in our home state’s growth. We know Colorado is committed to environmentally-sound development, and C-PACE is a powerful tool to help us meet our clean energy goals.”
About Colorado C-PACE
A program of the New Energy Improvement District (NEID) administered by Sustainable Real Estate Solutions, Colorado C-PACE facilitates financing for energy and water improvements in new and existing commercial buildings, including new heating/cooling systems, lighting, water pumps, insulation, and renewable energy projects. C-PACE offers long-term financing that covers 100 percent of the project cost and is repaid over a period of up to 20 years. The payments are structured as a regular line item on the property tax bill. When a property is sold, the C-PACE assessment can stay with the property and transfer to the new owner, who enjoys the ongoing utility cost savings associated with the project.
About SRS
Sustainable Real Estate Solutions (SRS) partners with state and local governments to administer commercial property assessed clean energy (C-PACE) programs. Founded in 2010 by experienced commercial real estate and energy efficiency professionals, the company’s proprietary technology-enabled PACEworx™ Platform streamlines the management of the data-intensive C-PACE technical and financial underwriting process. SRS’s Investor Confidence Project-credentialed quality assurance methodology has facilitated more than $150 million in C-PACE financing nationwide—a level unmatched in the industry. SRS empowers C-PACE public-private partnerships across the country. The company is based in Trumbull, Connecticut.