Garden City DDA

Background

The Garden City Downtown Development Authority’s (DDA) mission is to enhance the quality of life for Garden City residents by strengthening the downtown district, in order to benefit the greater Garden City community.

Kim Dold, the Executive Director of Garden City DDA, and her team has wanted to upgrade Garden City’s downtown lighting for some time, as their existing streetlight’s lens covers have been discontinued, which led to increasing maintenance issues. Dold explained, “It got to the point where a dozen lights would be out, and no sooner than repairing those, the following week we’d have three more out.”

The DDA looked into traditional bank loans and issuing a bond to upgrade their street lights, but neither properly addressed their needs. “We would have eventually done the project, but probably not for a couple more years,” said Dold. “The Sustain program made it possible to enhance the look of the downtown area immediately, which helps contribute to Garden City’s economic growth.”

With the Sustain program, CGE Energy’s team was able to upgrade streetlights along Ford Road and Middlebelt Road to energy efficient LED lighting, conserving over 50% of energy usage. CGE Energy also sourced new, custom designed lenses to replace the discontinued models. All ongoing maintenance and repair of the street lighting is also included in the Sustain program.

Energy Saving Results

Having $0 invested with CGE Sustain, the Garden City DDA was able to turn wasted energy expenses into a positive cash flow more than $20,000 over the span of 10 years.

With no upfront cost or new bond needed, Garden City’s utility bill is reduced each month, energy savings fully pay for the Sustain program, and the excess savings can be reinvested by the DDA to make further improvements within the district. “Saving on energy expenses is money that can be spent on other projects in the downtown,” concluded Dold.

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