Grand Traverse County could reduce its utility bill by $201,000 annually while also modernizing many of its facilities, according to a consultant who met with commissioners Wednesday.

Dave Gehr of Johnson Controls pitched the board on a "self-funded asset renewal program." The company conducted a free analysis of 11 county-owned buildings – including the Civic Center, Governmental Center, County Jail and Courthouse – looking for opportunities to increase energy efficiencies and decrease costs.

Based on its preliminary assessment, Gehr said the company found $3.9 million in potential energy savings over a 15-year-period – enough to fund $2.7 million in upgrades. “We don’t always find energy savings,” Gehr told commissioners. “Sometimes you find them, and sometimes buildings are running so efficiently you can’t build a project out of it. Here (in Grand Traverse County) there’s definitely a project.”

Gerh noted that some county facilities – such as the Courthouse and the county’s Public Services building – had “obsolete” control systems, requiring employees to hoard old service parts or else hunt them down on eBay. “I don’t think any two buildings have the same type of control system,” agreed Johnson Controls Engineer Bill Witchell, who helped review the buildings. 

Witchell also noted the pool energy system and chiller for the ice rink at the Civic Center were at potential risk of “failure” in the near future, and that compressors on top of the Hall of Justice – which commissioners last week agreed to pay nearly $25,000 to repair – were repeatedly failing despite being relatively new. He said the compressors were either a target for lightning strikes or were failing due to improper installation. In either scenario, without a long-term fix “it’s probably going to happen again,” said Witchell.

Should commissioners agree to a slate of recommended improvements – including modernizing control systems, upgrading to energy-efficient lighting and updating building mechanicals at county facilities – they could reduce their utility costs by 28 percent annually from $726,000 to $525,000, said Gehr. The company guarantees both an installation price for improvements and the savings they’ll generate; the arrangement allows the county to bond or invest in improvements at a low interest rate, then pay off upgrades with the utility savings, according to Gehr.

At the end of the 15-year period, Gehr said, the county could realize “excess savings” of $621,000 annually to its general fund.

“Anytime I can put $621,000 in the bank, I’m going to try to do that,” said Chairwoman Christine Maxbauer. “However…we are starting to look ahead as to whether or not we’re going to continue to utilize certain buildings.” Maxbauer and Commissioner Dr. Dan Lathrop both suggested taking Johnson Controls' base proposal and customizing it to reflect the fact that some facilities, like the County Jail and Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, may be used differently or not at all in the future.

Gehr affirmed the proposal can be tailored, but noted that as “we determine which buildings stay and which one won’t be impacted, that (savings) number is going to change, because some areas generate bigger savings than others.” He also pointed out the county could realize additional operational and staffing savings by installing more modern and easily maintained systems in county facilities.

Commissioners agreed to further discuss a possible contract with Johnson Controls at their July 29 board meeting. The board will also seek the input of the county’s capital improvement committee on the proposal.