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HomeMy WebLinkAboutClimate Council Summary5.15.25Climate Council Meeting Summary Notes – May 15, 2025 Attending: Climate Council Members Role Organization Sally Greene Commissioner BOCC Kristie Mather Board Member Commission for the Environment Robb English Town Commissioner Hillsborough Board of Commissioners Wendy Kuhn PRB Member Hillsborough Parks and Recreation Board Representative Greg Randolph CAT Team Member Carrboro Climate Action Team Melissa McCullough Town Council Chapel Hill Town Council Tom Henkel Chair Chapel Hill Environmental Stewardship Advisory Board Riza Jenkins School Board Vice Chair CHCCS Board Member Sarah Smylie Board Member Orange County School Board Patrick Florence Director of Construction Orange County Schools Melanie Elliott UNC Sustainability UNC Sustainability Lead Ian Scott Vice President of Advocacy The Chamber for a Greater Chapel Hill Carrboro Staff Role Organization John Richardson Community and Sustainability Resilience Manager Town of Chapel Hill Brennan Bouma Sustainability Program Analyst Town of Chapel Hill Stephanie Trueblood Public Space and Sustainability Manager Town of Hillsborough Amy Armbruster Chief Sustainability Officer Town of Carrboro Amy Eckberg Sustainability Programs Manager Orange County Mel Gilles Sustainability Projects Analyst Orange County • The group reviewed the agenda and, due to a scheduling conflict with a school board meeting, decided to reschedule the November meeting. The meeting will now be held the second week of November, on November 13, 2025 (same time, same location), instead of the third week of the month. • We received a presentation from two UNC-Chapel Hill students, Dheri Brown and Serena Sherwood, who shared their Electrify research and campaign developed as part of a class project with the Hussman School of Journalism. Their work provides valuable insights and campaign materials that will inform our efforts to launch an Electrify campaign in 2026. • John Richardson, Amy Armbruster, and Mel Gilles presented on this year’s heat resilience efforts. The presentation covered the Beat the Heat campaign, the Heat Cohort, the Heat Action Plan, and a call to form a dedicated Heat Task Force. Council members were encouraged to amplify heat posts and spread the word about joining the heat taskforce. • Amy Armbruster also shared an overview of the C-PACE program (Commercial Property Assessed Capital Expenditure). C-PACE offers long-term, fixed-rate financing for energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water conservation upgrades to commercial properties. Repayment occurs through a special assessment on the property tax bill, aligning with the useful life of the improvements—often up to 20 or 30 years. The program is financed by private capital providers, with no use of taxpayer funds. Key borrower protections include: o No acceleration of repayment by the lender o Prepayment flexibility • The meeting concluded with a brief round of good news shared by attendees.