Hub February 2025 Newsletter

Building Energy Resource Hub February 2025 Newsletter

Connect with us at the Hub Help Desk

The Hub Help Desk is ready for your questions and inquiries. The Help Desk provides free, comprehensive support for building professionals, including commercial and multi-family building owners, contractors, and municipal representatives. Call us at 855-520-7693 or email help@buildinghub.energy today!

Get Involved: Volunteer with the Hub!

The Building Energy Resource Hub is seeking dedicated volunteers to help guide building professionals in improving energy performance and meeting compliance goals. Your support will play a key role in assisting Illinois' commercial and multi-family buildings to reduce emissions, save energy, and future-proof their operations. 

Our first two opportunities include: 

• Discussion Forum Contributor: Help foster engagement in our newly launched forum by sharing insights and answering questions. 
• Benchmarking Expert: Support users in understanding energy benchmarking tools and best practices. 



Interested in getting involved? Fill out this quick form to learn more:

Green Lease Leaders: Applications are open, apply today!

As the demand for sustainable buildings grows, Green Lease Leaders is setting the standard for how landlords and tenants can collaborate on energy efficiency, health, and environmental responsibility. A green lease goes beyond traditional leasing agreements by incorporating sustainability clauses that align the financial and environmental interests of both parties. The Green Lease Leaders program provides guidance and technical assistance for navigating sustainability efforts but also recognizes tenant and landlords that are leading this work. Green leases aren’t just for commercial properties and office buildings—check out the roadmap for multi-family buildings.  

A green lease includes provisions that promote investments in energy efficiency, water conservation, waste reduction, and other sustainable practices. These leases create a collaborative framework for landlords and tenants to work together including:

• Identify shared sustainability priorities such as health, wellness, and energy efficiency 
• Define operational expectations for building performance and tenant spaces 
• Establish clear communication channels for data sharing, maintenance, and environmental reporting 

Created by Institute for Market Transformation (IMT) and U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Alliance, the Green Lease Leaders program celebrates organizations that integrate energy efficiency and sustainability into lease agreements. The Green Lease Leaders application portal is open and accepting applications for 2025 recognition! Apply by April 11.

New Funding Resource

Illinois Climate Bank Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund 



The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) and Illinois Finance Authority (IFA) are now accepting pre-applications for the Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund (EE RLF) program. This initiative offers low-interest Bridge Loans to nonprofits, public entities, and commercial building owners. The program aims to finance clean energy projects, such as building electrification, energy storage, and distributed generation, while addressing funding gaps caused by delays in receiving federal direct pay tax credits and Illinois Solar for All incentives. 

Apply for the EE RLF Bridge Loan here: Pre-application Link. On February 19, 2025, IFA hosted its first Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund webinar—check out the slides and recording here. IFA will be hosting working group meetings in March and April to discuss the further development of the Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund program. If you are interested in participating in these working groups, please fill out the EE RLF Working Group Interest Form.

Upcoming Hub Events

Innovative Gas Technologies and the Role of Utilities in a Clean Energy Future
April 2 @ 12:00 PM

As the energy sector moves toward a low-carbon future, both electric and gas utilities will play a critical role in ensuring safe, reliable, and affordable energy solutions. This virtual session will explore the latest advancements in gas efficiency, taking a deeper look at emerging and existing technologies that lower emissions and energy bills. Experts will discuss the potential of decarbonized fuels and innovative systems in achieving efficiency goals. Join us to learn how you can leverage these innovative technologies to lower energy costs in your next project—and which Peoples Gas incentives could help save you money up front. 

Upcoming Partner Events

Power Quality Considerations for EE Retrofits & Renewable Energy Systems

Hosted by Focus on Energy
March 5 @ 8:30 AM

Whether through energy efficiency improvements or by using renewable energy sources, many companies are seeking ways to reduce their cost of electrical energy. This training seminar addresses the power quality aspects of both energy efficiency retrofits and the use of renewable energy sources. It provides an overview of the effects on electrical power quality associated with some energy efficiency improvements and the use of renewable energy power sources.

ASHRAE Guideline 36 High-Performance Sequences of Operation for HVAC Systems
  Hosted by ASHRAE
  March 11 @ 11:00 AM

This course provides an overview of the newly adopted core codes, using a common HVAC system example to demonstrate the practical application of ASHRAE Guideline 36. Using real life examples, learn how ASHRAE Guideline 36 supports health through improved air quality and comfort, safety with reliable ventilation controls, and welfare by enhancing energy efficiency and sustainability.

Schools Can Save energy and Still Have a Comfortable Environment for Learning
  Hosted by Focus on the Future
  March 11 @ 9:00 AM

America’s schools spend more on energy than they do on textbooks and computers combined. In this webinar, we will discuss how schools can get smarter about energy efficiency. We will explore the energy-saving benefits of high-performance equipment and systems, such as windows, lighting, HVAC, plug loads and building automation. We will also cover the non-energy benefits of energy-efficiency upgrades, such as improved student performance.

Code Compliant Insulation Approaches Under the 2021 IECC

  Hosted by SEDAC
March 18 @ 12:00 PM
 

The increased insulation requirements of the 2021 IECC have made compliance more complex for some projects using traditional residential construction methods. This training will explain the increased requirements and explore various options to achieve Code compliance. Different compliance paths will be discussed including multiple prescriptive options as well as the performance path. The training will also discuss the use of different materials, details and methods to build less traditional, but still cost-effective assemblies.

Energy Code Conversations: Sharing Best Practices to Expedite Construction 
Hosted by SEDAC
March 27 @ 11:30 AM

During this event, SEDAC invites you to share and discuss the practices and processes that you have developed to reduce frustrations and ensure energy code compliance. This conversation will allow those in the construction industry to share and learn from each other while providing insight into the various perspectives across the industry. The goal of this roundtable is to identify the best practices in communications and project management that allow code compliant projects to be completed on schedule and on budget with minimal headaches.

Phius Certification, Energy Codes & Resilience 
Hosted by SEDAC
April 15 @ 12:00 PM

This training will take a deeper look at Phius certification as one of the newest compliance paths available in Illinois. They will discuss the five key concepts of the passive house building standard and how these concepts result in high-performance buildings. The training will cover how the increased performance of this building standard uses the science behind the requirements of the base code to substantially increase energy efficiency and overall resilience of a structure.