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Home My WebLink AboutEC Packet 9.9.2024City of Falcon Heights Environment Commission City Hall 2077 Larpenteur Avenue West AGENDA Monday, September 9, 2024 6:30 p.m. A.CALL TO ORDER: 6:30 p.m. B. ROLL CALL:Beth Mercer-Taylor (Chair) ____ Jared Mehlhaff ____ John Pellegrini (Vice-Chair) ____ Amy Christiansen ____ Emma Kostecki ____ Adam Keester ____ Pedro De Filippo Vannucci ____ Staff Liaison Lynch ____ Council Liaison Mielke ____ C.APPROVAL OF AGENDA D.APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1.June 10, 2024 E. NEW BUSINESS 1.Roseville Area High School – Student Projects 2.Partners in Energy – Executive Summary 3.MN GreenCorps Work Plan 4.Charging Smart Program 5.Climate Action Plan F.INFORMATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. Staff Liaison Report 2.Council Liaison Report G.ADJOURN Next regular meeting date: October 14, 2024 City of Falcon Heights Environment Commission City Hall 2077 Larpenteur Avenue West Minutes Monday, June 10, 2024 6:30 p.m. A. CALL TO ORDER: 6:30 p.m. B. ROLL CALL: Beth Mercer-Taylor (Chair) _X_ John Pellegrini (Vice-Chair) _X_ Jared Mehlhaff _A_ Emma Kostecki _A_ Amy Christiansen _X_ Pedro De Filippo Vannucci _A_ Adam Keester _X_ Staff Liaison Lynch _X_ Council Liaison Mielke _X_ C. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Vice-Chair Pellegrini made a motion to approve the agenda by consent. All were in favor. D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. May 13, 2024 Vice-Chair Pellegrini made a motion to approve the minutes from May 13, 2024 by consent. All were in favor. E. NEW BUSINESS 1. Christine Chitambar – Community Park Pond Tadpole Presentation Christine Chitambar introduced her son, Theo Baker. Theo is a rising 6th grader who has spent a lot of time around the main pond at Community Park over the years. He has noticed a marked decrease in the number of tadpoles, frogs, and native fish at the pond, and an increase in the number of goldfish in the pond. Some of the goldfish are very large. He stated the water is getting dirtier, and he finds a lot of soda cans, cups, metal debris, and other trash in the water. The Commission discussed this and the Mr. Baker explained he believes the goldfish are eating the tadpoles and causing this disruption to the ecosystem. He believes the goldfish need to be removed. The Commission directed City Staff to look into funding for remove of the goldfish and/or cleaning the pond. Mr. Baker and his mother will continue to research this issue. The Environment Commission is looking to hold a meeting at the Community Park shelter in the future to allow time to explore the pond and see these issues he is concerned about. 2. Boulevard Tree Replacement Discussion Staff Liaison Lynch continued the discussion from the last meeting about boulevard trees. She explained some cities have a tree replacement policy codified, while others have it just as a City policy. She explained the Falcon Heights City Code does address boulevard trees and it would be easiest to update this. She also advised that other cities allow residents to plant their own trees in the boulevards through a permitting process. This allows the residents to get the trees they would like, from a designated list, and provides the city with oversight to make sure this is done correctly. The forester would have to approve the type of tree, placement, size, and other concerns prior to the permit being issued. This would also require the resident to acknowledge that despite them paying for the tree, it will belong to the City as it will be in the City’s boulevard. Commissioners also discussed the tree board which would be required by the Tree City USA program. There is a program with UMN Department of Forest Resources, the Tree Steward Program, that could provide training to the City’s tree board. The Commission discussed this group of volunteers not being an official commission or a subcommittee of the Environment Commission, but rather just a group that assists with the tree replacements throughout the City. Staff Liaison Lynch stated she would look into this and bring information back to the July meeting. The Commission also discussed priorities for the tree replacement program. They want to make sure there is a large variety of trees being planted, they include larger trees for shade with a good growth rate, and tree litter is kept out of drains. They also discussed “messy” trees, such as fruiting trees, and that the property owners adjacent to boulevards where these are located must be responsible for cleaning up after these trees. Staff Liaison Lynch stated this was a good starting point for drafting some policies and code language, and she would do this and begin working on a budget. F. Information and Announcements 1. Staff Liaison Report Staff Liaison Lynch reminded Commissioners that as it is now June, No Mow May is over, and yards with turf grass need to be mowed. She requested Commissioners keep up the lawns and speak to their neighbors to remind them of the City policy. 2. Council Liaison Report Council Liaison Mielke informed the Commission about the current status of the Community Park building and that it is currently on hold due to pricing. The City is now looking into potentially rehabilitating the existing building. G. Adjourn Meeting was adjourned at 8:09 p.m. Next regular meeting date: July 8, 2024 ITEM FOR DISCUSSION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Roseville Area High School – Projects Description Council Liaison Mielke recently met with students from Roseville Area High School. The students expressed interest in working on an environmental project. They brainstormed and are here to get ideas of projects to take back to the school. Budget Impact None. Attachment(s) None. Action(s) Requested Staff requests Environment Commission discuss potential projects for the students. Meeting Date September 11, 2024 Agenda Item E-1 Attachment None. Submitted By Hannah Lynch, Community Development Coordinator / Planner ITEM FOR DISCUSSION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Partners in Energy – Executive Summary & Strategies Description The Partners in Energy program is close to being ready to have the Energy Action Plan adopted by City Council. An executive summary and strategies for the Plan have been drafted for review. Budget Impact None. Attachment(s) • Energy Action Plan - Executive Summary • Energy Action Plan – Strategies Action(s) Requested Staff requests Environment Commission review and discuss executive summary and strategies and any changes/additions that may need to be made. Meeting Date September 11, 2024 Agenda Item E-2 Attachment Executive Summary, Strategies Submitted By Hannah Lynch, Community Development Coordinator / Planner FALCON HEIGHTS Energy Action Plan Community Commitment In the heart of Falcon Heights, a community nestled amongst the State Fair grounds and the University of Minnesota, citizens and City leaders embarked on a transformative journey to prioritize energy strategies that lead to a sustainable and equitable future. Focus Areas Alleviating the Energy Burden The Energy Action Plan guides the city of Falcon Heights by outlining actions that connect the community through engaging residents, schools, businesses, and community organizations. The actions help connect people to resources to meet their energy needs while reaching the energy goals of the community as a whole. Enhancing Energy Efficiencies in Buildings Embracing Clean, Renewable Energy THE CONTENT OF THIS PLAN IS DERIVED FROM A SERIES OF PLANNING WORKSHOPS AND EVENTS HOSTED BY XCEL ENERGY’S PARTNERS IN ENERGY AND THE CITY OF FALCON HEIGHTS. THANK YOU TO THE FALCON HEIGHTS ENERGY ACTION TEAM WHO CONTRIBUTED MANY HOURS OF SERVICE TO CREATING OUR VISION, GOALS, AND STRATEGIES FOR THIS PLAN. Our Vision Falcon Heights prioritizes energy strategies that lead to a sustainable and equitable future.CON NECTING CO M MUNITY Energy Action Plan Goal In Falcon Heights the goal is to decrease projected greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% by 2030 while reaching out to residents and businesses with energy programs and resources. Achieving the goal Some of the strategies in the plan that will help reach our goal include Impact and Results of Plan Implementation This is the equivalent of avoiding over 11 million pounds of coal or 1,125,000 gallons of gasoline being burned, and the equivalent sequestering of carbon from 165,351 trees seedlings grown for 10 years! This will result in a substantial 65% increase in dollars saved by our community members and businesses. GHG Work alongside the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State Fair to collectively achieve greenhouse gas reduction in our community. Host community workshops on energy topics and program opportunities. Conduct outreach to building owners and managers with energy information.PartnerEngageConnect residents and businesses with resources to meet their energy needs. Create incentives for the community to take energy actions.Support Focus Area Strategy Action Items Timeline Alleviating energy burden for homeowners and renters Energy Outreach in Schools Identify school and teacher partnerships and work with those partnersto understand classroom needs Short Develop materials and activities that support appropriate energy engagement according to school partners Ask school libraries or other entities to host educaiional events regarding energy efficiency / conservation and renewable energy Encourage Falcon Heights School District / individual schools to partner with "EmPowered Schools" Utilize the Minnesota GreenStep Sachool Program to show students that their schools are leadding the way in energy conservation and reducing environmental impacts Neighborhood Liaisons Call for community volunteers by the City Short Provide Xcel Energy resources to the volunteers to share with their neighbors / associations Give volunteers ideas on how to share resources with neighbors, (i.e. create email list of neighbors, National Night Out, NextDoor website, etc.) Access to Renter Resources Create an outreach campaign for renters to explore Xcel Energy’s Renewable*Connect® and Solar*Rewards Community® Short Heighten awareness to building owners of Xcel Energy’s programs for buildings where renters are affected by a high energy burden: HESP, MFBE, Etc. Home Energy Squad Visits Increase awareness in the community about Home Energy Squad Medium Offer promotions of discounted or free visits paid by the City of Falcon Heights to increase participation in HES energy audits Showcase residents who have had a HES visit and made improvements in their home using Xcel Energy rebates Accessible Communication and Partnerships Create an Energy Action Hub on the City of Falcon Heights’ website to disseminate information about energy resources Medium Establish partnerships with community organizations and/or Falcon Heights specific publications to bring awareness to residents Include energy educational resources on the City of Falcon Heights email newsletter Highlight Positive Testimonials Showcase positive testimonials in the City’s newsletter, blog and articles in local media Medium Postcard mail out campaign of testimonials from residents to other residents Postcard mail out campaign of testimonials from business owners to other businesses Share testimonials at Chamber of Commerce meetings Improve Living Conditions Through Energy Projects for Student Housing Connect with CTC board and the environmentally conscious student community to develop opportunities Long Form partnership with the neighboring city councils for mutually beneficial energy projects Enhancing Energy Efficiencies in Buildings Energy Improvements and Repair Ordinance Promote rebates, incentives and recognition for energy efficient multi-family buildings Medium/Long Review and revise City code to incentivize more energy efficient multi-family buildings Support the adoption of standards requiring buildings larger than 5 living units to periodically re-invest in energy efficient improvements that have a reasonable payback period Support incentives that retrofit and redevelop existing multi- family buildings to improve energy while respecting the historic integrity of buildings and communities Incentives and Recognition for Energy Efficiency Projects Be present at community events with energy efficiency resources and tips to encourage businesses and residents to reduce energy use Short/Medium Develop a form on the city website for residents to identify and be recognized for their energy efficiency projects Request homeowners who have made significant energy efficiency improvements to temporarily display an energy conservation yard sign recognizing them for their efforts Publicly acknowledge homeowners and business owners in the City’s email newsletter for their energy conservation efforts Partnering with State Fair to Encourage Energy Projects Draft proposal to partner with State Fair to encourage energy projects Medium Encouraging Electic Heating Options Create targeted outreach programs to educate business owners and owners of multi-family buildings about electric heating options Short Host workshops and informational sessions to highlight building benefits and tenant satisfaction, encouraging owners to adopt electric heating Encourage owners who have already installed air source heat pumps to share their success stories with other building owners through presentations, open houses, and through business networking events Assist businesses and workforce to keep up to date on technological advances in building energy. Provide outreach to local businesses to assist in these educational efforts Recommend energy improvements for rental properties at time of annual inspections. Provide an opportunity to educate building owners about energy improvements annually, giving updates on electrification technology and available incentives Form Climate Action Partnership with U of M Draft a proposal for collaboration between the City Council and the University of Minnesota and find mutually beneficial projects and collaboration opportunities. Medium Advocate for increasing EV charging infrastructure on and off campus Encourage charging infrastructure on new developments and retrofits, especially multi-family buildings and businesses. Support the continued build out of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EVs) Collaborate with Metro Transit Draft a request to Metro Transit to have electric buses on Route 121 Long Follow up regularly on this request until transition is made from burning fossil fuels to electricity Establish a Program to Reduce or Eliminate Costs of Home Energy Squad visits Address economic barriers for residents who may be hard to reach or under-represented in the community and increase HES visits by promoting free visits (HES is free to IQ customers) Medium Showcase Existing Homes and Businesses Identify homes and businesses (that have opted-in to be identified) that have already been updated with energy efficiency, beneficial electrification, and/or onsite renewable energy installations Short Give recognition to those who would wish to participate in open house tours and set up tour dates for groups to visit Host a local energy fair in Falcon Heights and encourage citizen and local business participation Embracing Clean, Renewable Energy Group-Buy Solar Contact and form a collaboration with Solar United Neighbors (SUN) to help residents and businesses bulk buy solar Long Pursue grants to assist with the installation of solar panels on homes and businesses. This financial support will make renewable energy a viable option for more residents, reducing the City's overall carbon footprint Solar on Public Buildings Request proposals for solar installations on municipal buildings Long Select a solar installation company based on the proposals received and have them begin the process Explore grants for installation of onsite solar on municipal buildings Support / Promote Renewable*Connect® Flex for Residents Encourage participation in Xcel Energy's Renewable*Connect® program and other community solar subscription opportunities to residents during events and on the City website Medium Share incentives to renewable energy options for renters, residents who may not have a home suitable for onsite solar, and low-income residents Host frequent workshops to educate the community on renewable energy topics and resources. These sessions will empower residents with the knowledge to make informed decisions about their energy use and investments Partnering with the U of M to Encourage Renewable Energy Reach out to the University of Minnesota to form a collaboration centered around renewable energy technology Medium Partner with the University of Minnesota to share incentives for renewable energy programs for multi-family building residents and low income residents Help Residents Navigate Renewable Energy resources and establish a reliable workforce for renewable energy Educate City residents on rebates and incentives for renewable energy Long Host frequent workshops to educate the community on renewable energy topics and resources. These sessions will empower residents with the knowledge to make informed decisions about their energy use and investments Encourage residents to apply for jobs in the renewable energy industry and/or get training and education to enter this industry’s workforce ITEM FOR DISCUSSION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item MN GreenCorps Work Plan Description Falcon Heights has been chosen to have a GreenCorps member work with us for 2024-2025. They will be starting on September 23. A work plan has been approved by the program for review. Budget Impact None. Attachment(s) • GreenCorps Work Plan Action(s) Requested Staff requests Environment Commission review and discuss work plan and specific ideas for implementing the plan. Meeting Date September 11, 2024 Agenda Item E-3 Attachment GreenCorps Work Plan Submitted By Hannah Lynch, Community Development Coordinator / Planner 1 Minnesota GreenCorps Member Service Plan Program year 2024-2025 COMMUNITY READINESS & OUTREACH Member name: Organization, city: City of Falcon Heights Supervisor name: Hannah B. Lynch Date: June 21, 2024 Supervisor email: hannah.b.lynch@falconheights.org Supervisor phone: 651.792.7613 Overview: The service plan outlines member activities and the approximate timeframe. This document provides information to the candidate when considering the position offer and serves as a project guide for members and supervisors during the service term. The service plan is a working document. Changes to the service plan of 40 or more hours must be discussed with program staff in advance and will require the submission of a revised service plan. Instructions: Complete this document by inputting information from the host site application project plan, incorporating any changes discussed during the interview or selection. Reference the position description on page four to ensure alignment and include specific activity details on page two. • Members begin service at their host site on Monday, September 23. The end of the service term is Tuesday, August 12. • Members serve 1700 hours total, 300 hours in training and 1400 hours in direct service. o Complete the Member Activities – Training section by inputting site-specific trainings under “Host Site Trainings.” These can be informal internal trainings such as InDesign, ArcGIS, or Asana or more formal external trainings such as Master Water Stewards or Smart Salting. This does not have to be an exhaustive list but should include trainings that will prepare members for service activities. o Complete the Member Activities – Service section by inputting the activity title and a brief one sentence summary in the ‘member activities’ column and specific sub-bullet points further describing associated activities in the ‘activity details’ column. Input hours per activity (hours should total 1400) and the month(s) that the activity is anticipated to be conducted. • To aid the member in their transition into the service site, please complete all questions in the host site information and service community/housing sections on page three. 2 Member Activities – Training Activity Details Hours and Timeline MN GREENCORPS TRAININGS MN GreenCorps orientation and quarterly trainings Other trainings, workshops, conferences Civic engagement activities Members attend all required MN GreenCorps trainings, including the 3-day orientation and quarterly trainings. Members participate in other trainings, workshops, and conferences to gain technical and professional skills to prepare them for service. Members participate in civic engagement activities to broaden their experience and further engage in their community. 300 hours, Sep - Aug HOST SITE TRAININGS In office trainings - Work with supervisor to go over City operations, software, and official documents. These will include the website, S-drive, GIS, City Code, Canva, iWorQ, branding, and office supplies. - Learn about Partners in Energy, Energy Action Plan and strategies called out within that for outreach. - Take a tour of the City with supervisor to lay eyes on properties and learn about how the City works with UMN and the State Fair N/A (included in the 300 hour total above) Member Activities – Service Activity Details Hours and Timeline Establish an outreach program for homeowners, renters, businesses, and landlords/owners of multifamily buildings to outline Xcel Energy programs for energy savings, EV rebates, and education on other environmentally-focused behavior changes. - Create a quarterly newsletter to go out to property owners in the City encouraging enrollment in the Home Energy Squad program, share information on EVs and rebates, and educate on easy ways to reduce home energy. - Create an educational handout for businesses and multifamily property owners to be sent out during yearly license renewal. This will include information from Xcel Energy specific to commercial buildings on energy savings. - Work to create/update the City website with information from quarterly newsletter. - Create additional educational handouts for renters and property owners on reducing home energy use, rebates for electric upgrades, and tips for other behavioral changes to increase environmental awareness with home energy use. - Create a weekly newsletter article (3-5 paragraphs + links) on an environmental topic of the member’s choice for the weekly City email newsletter. 600 hours, Sep - Aug Connect with multifamily property owners and property managers to encourage upgrades to old multifamily buildings to allow for more energy efficient appliances and changes. - Identify the correct point of contact for each multifamily home in the City. - Work with that contact and CEE/Xcel Energy to get them on board with energy efficient upgrades to the building. - Provide information for them to share with their renters on how to effectively manage energy use within individual apartments. 375 hours, Sep - Aug 3 Assist with launching the Partners in Energy program. - Falcon Height’s Energy Action Plan will be going in front of City Council in August for approval. This plan will inform City Policy and community outreach for promoting electrification efforts. As part of this, the Energy Action Team would like to hold a kickoff event in September or October for residents, most likely in conjunction with another City event. - Create family-friendly activities for this event to engage and collect feedback about the Energy Action Plan. - Attend the event and assist with handing out information and answering questions about the Energy Action Plan. 50 hours, Sep - Oct Attend Environment Commission meetings to update Commissioners on GreenCorps activities. - Create and present a memo at all Environment Commission meetings (second Monday of every month) outlining the GreenCorps work that has been completed in the past month. - If the member cannot attend the meeting(s), they are welcome to just submit a memo and staff liaison for the Environment Commission will present. 25 hours, Sep - Aug Perform a tree survey of the City. - Drive and/or walk throughout the City, and work with the Public Works department, to note where boulevard trees have been removed. This will be to inform a tree replacement program to begin in Spring 2025. - Determine priority areas for tree replacement based off environmental justice zones and data from maps such as the Tree Equity Score map and urban heat island effect maps. 350 hours, Sep - Dec (dependent on weather) 4 Host Site Information 1) Share a few sentences about the host site supervisor, including education, professional history, and work style. Hannah Lynch is the host site supervisor. Hannah is a 2011 graduate of the Honors College at the College of Charleston in Charleston, SC. She has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Historic Preservation and Community Planning. Since that time, Hannah has worked in many different industries, from bookkeeping and accounting, to furniture design and manufacturing, before finally making her way into the local government realm. She previously worked as Zoning Administrator for Polk County, NC from 2018-2022 before coming to Falcon Heights where she now works as the Community Development Coordinator and City Planner. As part of her role, she also serves as the Recycling Coordinator for the City and is the staff liaison to the Environment Commission. Hannah is a fairly laid-back worker who can keep a level head in an emergency, and likes to work with people who can be self-starters. She loves teaching about local government and is happy to help in whatever way she can. 2) Provide organizational information including typical office hours, attire, office setting/layout, teambuilding/workplace socializing, etc. Falcon Heights is a very small government operation. Currently there are four full-time Public Works employees, five full-time administrative employees, and a part-time accountant. The main office is fairly open layout and the member will be sitting up front near our Communications Coordinator. Attire is a more casual form of business casual, and employees do wear jeans on Fridays. Administrative employees work together when needed and enjoy taking mental breaks every now and then to chat. 3) Indicate if you or others at the organization work remotely and if you plan to allow the member to serve remotely, one or two days per week. While members should generally provide service directly to the people and in the communities where they serve, members are allowed to serve remotely or “teleserve” a maximum of two days (or 16 hours) in a 40-hour service week. Host sites are encouraged to allow the member to teleserve at least one day (or 8 hours) in a 40-hour service week. Remote work for employees doesn’t happen often, but it is available. Hannah often works Thursday afternoons from home to assist with childcare. Telework is available if needed, but generally the member would be expected to be in the office. We can set it up to be possible one day per week, if they would like that option. 4) Provide any additional insight into your organization’s workplace culture, such as collaborative versus independent workstyles, slow or fast pace, laid back versus formal, people or task-oriented, etc. All employees at Falcon Heights tend to be fairly independent. We work quietly for the most part but we all share a good sense of humor and can laugh at the little things. Mistakes are okay – we understand that they happen. We value honesty and hard work, but we tend to be fairly laid back as well. We are also very customer service oriented. We treat all members of the public with respect, regardless of what the question is. We will always try to find an answer to a question, but we are also okay with asking a resident to wait on a response if it means getting the best, most correct answer for them. There is nothing we do that cannot wait on a call back. Service Community / Housing 1) To aid in member relocation, please share three or more housing options with affordable rent, including complex name, address, and contact if available. Members will want to look in the surrounding areas around Falcon Heights for housing, most likely. There is not a ton in the City, but Roseville has a lot of options. We are also a mile from St. Paul and Minneapolis. I don’t have any specific housing options, but a quick apartments.com search can come up with a ton of recommendations in a good price range. I personally live in Hugo and recommend going farther out if more affordable options are needed. I would not go past the Blaine/Hugo/Lino Lakes area north, though. I would not recommend living south of the cities. 5 2) Please share any additional information about the service community that might be relevant for a MN GreenCorps member relocating to the area. Falcon Heights is a very special and unique community. We are home to the State Fair and the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, along with several large agricultural fields in the middle of downtown, however both of those entities are not tax paying, and we have no jurisdiction over them. Because of this, there can be some conflicting feelings between residents and these organizations. Because of our closeness to the University, many of our residents are former professors. We have a large population of highly educated residents, and they tend to be very vocal. Our City is very environment-focused, as well. While we may feel rural due to the agricultural fields, we are very much a first-ring suburb of St. Paul. 6 Community readiness and outreach member position Service position summary Strengthen host site capacity and community resilience to impacts of climate change by advancing sustainable practices, improving infrastructure, and increasing knowledge of residents and community-based organizations. Provide outreach, education, and assistance to raise understanding and increase the use of best practices on energy conservation and green transportation, stormwater and forestry, and waste reduction and recycling. Work with local government(s), tribal nations, school districts, nonprofit and community-based organizations, and other partners to adopt and implement sustainability best practices. Essential functions Provide community-based outreach, education, and assistance to individuals and community organizations through campaigns, presentations, events, trainings, workshops, social media, and other related activities. Outreach and assistance will focus on one or more of the topics listed below: Energy conservation and green transportation: • Promote energy conservation best practices that reduce energy usage at home, work, and school. • Encourage reduction of vehicle miles traveled and improved air quality through complete streets planning, education and practices, safe routes to school initiatives, and education on multi-modal transportation, mobility options, and active living. • Promote opportunities for adopting and expanding electric vehicle usage and charging infrastructure within communities. • Promote emission reductions to community members through educational campaigns targeting practices and behaviors that alleviate air pollution (i.e., air alert education, car-sharing, public transit, biking,), and those that contribute to air pollution (i.e., gas-powered lawn equipment, backyard fires, vehicle idling, single-occupancy vehicles, and low-efficiency wood-burning boilers/stoves/fireplaces). Stormwater and forestry: • Conduct outreach to increase awareness of stormwater and community forestry best practices that prevent or reduce water pollution and improve public lands. • Conduct and engage community members in community stormwater and forestry initiatives such as rain garden installation, tree planting, and invasive species removal volunteer events. • Provide outreach to communities on the harmful effects of chloride (i.e., road salt and water softener discharge), promote best management practices that reduce chloride application and discharge, and help host organizations in offering Smart Salting trainings in their communities. Waste reduction and recycling: • Promote resources to strengthen community resilience through waste prevention, recycling, composting/organics management, and food waste prevention. • Provide community outreach and education on local food production, food waste prevention, increasing the capture and distribution of reusable materials, preventing waste, and recycling. 7 • Support recycling efforts by providing on-site assessments, gathering baseline data, and conducting initial waste sorts, supporting recycling system setup, delivering resident education, and conducting post implementation data collection to track project effectiveness. Community sustainability: • Provide support to sustainability-related education activities. This could include the development and implementation of environmental events, fairs, or workshops to educate individuals. • Support outreach activities, including dissemination of messages via website and social networking. • Create, update, and distribute educational materials, helping ensure that educational materials are relevant, informative, and accurate. • Conduct surveys to collect pre/post information from participants in trainings, events, workshops, etc., on knowledge gained and/or behavior change to more sustainable environmental practices. • Mobilize volunteers to assist in the implementation of activities. • Assist with additional sustainability-related projects as outlined in the energy conservation and green transportation, stormwater and forestry, and waste reduction and recycling position descriptions. ITEM FOR DISCUSSION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Charging Smart Program Description Falcon Heights participated in the Charging Smart Program (formerly EV Smart) last year and achieved Bronze designation, one of the first cities in the country to do so. We are participating again this year and hoping to achieve Silver designation. As part of this, we need to discuss zoning and restrictions that intentionally or unintentionally prohibit EVSE deployment. We also need to discuss a plan to remove barriers to all members of our community benefiting from EVs. Budget Impact None. Attachment(s) None. Action(s) Requested Staff requests Environment Commission discuss restrictions in City Code that currently intentionally or unintentionally prohibit EVSE deployment and ways to mitigate those issues. Meeting Date September 11, 2024 Agenda Item E-4 Attachment None. Submitted By Hannah Lynch, Community Development Coordinator / Planner 1 Minnesota GreenCorps Member Service Plan Program year 2024-2025 COMMUNITY READINESS & OUTREACH Member name: Organization, city: City of Falcon Heights Supervisor name: Hannah B. Lynch Date: June 21, 2024 Supervisor email: hannah.b.lynch@falconheights.org Supervisor phone: 651.792.7613 Overview: The service plan outlines member activities and the approximate timeframe. This document provides information to the candidate when considering the position offer and serves as a project guide for members and supervisors during the service term. The service plan is a working document. Changes to the service plan of 40 or more hours must be discussed with program staff in advance and will require the submission of a revised service plan. Instructions: Complete this document by inputting information from the host site application project plan, incorporating any changes discussed during the interview or selection. Reference the position description on page four to ensure alignment and include specific activity details on page two. • Members begin service at their host site on Monday, September 23. The end of the service term is Tuesday, August 12. • Members serve 1700 hours total, 300 hours in training and 1400 hours in direct service. o Complete the Member Activities – Training section by inputting site-specific trainings under “Host Site Trainings.” These can be informal internal trainings such as InDesign, ArcGIS, or Asana or more formal external trainings such as Master Water Stewards or Smart Salting. This does not have to be an exhaustive list but should include trainings that will prepare members for service activities. o Complete the Member Activities – Service section by inputting the activity title and a brief one sentence summary in the ‘member activities’ column and specific sub-bullet points further describing associated activities in the ‘activity details’ column. Input hours per activity (hours should total 1400) and the month(s) that the activity is anticipated to be conducted. • To aid the member in their transition into the service site, please complete all questions in the host site information and service community/housing sections on page three. 2 Member Activities – Training Activity Details Hours and Timeline MN GREENCORPS TRAININGS MN GreenCorps orientation and quarterly trainings Other trainings, workshops, conferences Civic engagement activities Members attend all required MN GreenCorps trainings, including the 3-day orientation and quarterly trainings. Members participate in other trainings, workshops, and conferences to gain technical and professional skills to prepare them for service. Members participate in civic engagement activities to broaden their experience and further engage in their community. 300 hours, Sep - Aug HOST SITE TRAININGS In office trainings - Work with supervisor to go over City operations, software, and official documents. These will include the website, S-drive, GIS, City Code, Canva, iWorQ, branding, and office supplies. - Learn about Partners in Energy, Energy Action Plan and strategies called out within that for outreach. - Take a tour of the City with supervisor to lay eyes on properties and learn about how the City works with UMN and the State Fair N/A (included in the 300 hour total above) Member Activities – Service Activity Details Hours and Timeline Establish an outreach program for homeowners, renters, businesses, and landlords/owners of multifamily buildings to outline Xcel Energy programs for energy savings, EV rebates, and education on other environmentally-focused behavior changes. - Create a quarterly newsletter to go out to property owners in the City encouraging enrollment in the Home Energy Squad program, share information on EVs and rebates, and educate on easy ways to reduce home energy. - Create an educational handout for businesses and multifamily property owners to be sent out during yearly license renewal. This will include information from Xcel Energy specific to commercial buildings on energy savings. - Work to create/update the City website with information from quarterly newsletter. - Create additional educational handouts for renters and property owners on reducing home energy use, rebates for electric upgrades, and tips for other behavioral changes to increase environmental awareness with home energy use. - Create a weekly newsletter article (3-5 paragraphs + links) on an environmental topic of the member’s choice for the weekly City email newsletter. 600 hours, Sep - Aug Connect with multifamily property owners and property managers to encourage upgrades to old multifamily buildings to allow for more energy efficient appliances and changes. - Identify the correct point of contact for each multifamily home in the City. - Work with that contact and CEE/Xcel Energy to get them on board with energy efficient upgrades to the building. - Provide information for them to share with their renters on how to effectively manage energy use within individual apartments. 375 hours, Sep - Aug Commented [MC(1]: Input activity and brief summary, e.g., PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT: Support the development of a youth steward program, Future Lake Leaders, that equips youth with the skills to build a network of resilient communities and protect a shared natural resource within the Upper Mississippi River basin. Pilot the program at the Nay Ah Shing School District with support from the University of Minnesota Regional Sustainable Development Partnership. Commented [MC(2]: Input sub activities with details including #/name of events, defined audience educated, #individuals engaged, #/type of ed tools developed, etc. e.g., PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT: - Meet with ~5 teachers and 15-30 students from the Nay Ah Shing school district to survey community needs for a youth stewardship program. Analyze results and report findings to employees and partners to help guide development of the Future Lake Leaders pilot program. - Assist with curriculum development by refining existing educational materials to be age-specific and relevant. - Incorporate the Junior Loon Biologist program within curriculum activities. - Engage 75-100 youth in freshwater stewardship through presentations and classroom visits at Nay Ah Shing Schools and on the educational pontoon during student visits. 3 Assist with launching the Partners in Energy program. - Falcon Height’s Energy Action Plan will be going in front of City Council in August for approval. This plan will inform City Policy and community outreach for promoting electrification efforts. As part of this, the Energy Action Team would like to hold a kickoff event in September or October for residents, most likely in conjunction with another City event. - Create family-friendly activities for this event to engage and collect feedback about the Energy Action Plan. - Attend the event and assist with handing out information and answering questions about the Energy Action Plan. 50 hours, Sep - Oct Attend Environment Commission meetings to update Commissioners on GreenCorps activities. - Create and present a memo at all Environment Commission meetings (second Monday of every month) outlining the GreenCorps work that has been completed in the past month. - If the member cannot attend the meeting(s), they are welcome to just submit a memo and staff liaison for the Environment Commission will present. 25 hours, Sep - Aug MARGINAL FUNCTION (MAX 350 HOURS): Perform a tree survey of the City. - Drive and/or walk throughout the City, and work with the Public Works department, to note where boulevard trees have been removed. This will be to inform a tree replacement program to begin in Spring 2025. - Determine priority areas for tree replacement based off environmental justice zones and data from maps such as the Tree Equity Score map and urban heat island effect maps. 350 hours, Sep - Dec (dependent on weather) 4 Host Site Information 1) Share a few sentences about the host site supervisor, including education, professional history, and work style. Hannah Lynch is the host site supervisor. Hannah is a 2011 graduate of the Honors College at the College of Charleston in Charleston, SC. She has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Historic Preservation and Community Planning. Since that time, Hannah has worked in many different industries, from bookkeeping and accounting, to furniture design and manufacturing, before finally making her way into the local government realm. She previously worked as Zoning Administrator for Polk County, NC from 2018-2022 before coming to Falcon Heights where she now works as the Community Development Coordinator and City Planner. As part of her role, she also serves as the Recycling Coordinator for the City and is the staff liaison to the Environment Commission. Hannah is a fairly laid-back worker who can keep a level head in an emergency, and likes to work with people who can be self-starters. She loves teaching about local government and is happy to help in whatever way she can. 2) Provide organizational information including typical office hours, attire, office setting/layout, teambuilding/workplace socializing, etc. Falcon Heights is a very small government operation. Currently there are four full-time Public Works employees, five full-time administrative employees, and a part-time accountant. The main office is fairly open layout and the member will be sitting up front near our Communications Coordinator. Attire is a more casual form of business casual, and employees do wear jeans on Fridays. Administrative employees work together when needed and enjoy taking mental breaks every now and then to chat. 3) Indicate if you or others at the organization work remotely and if you plan to allow the member to serve remotely, one or two days per week. While members should generally provide service directly to the people and in the communities where they serve, members are allowed to serve remotely or “teleserve” a maximum of two days (or 16 hours) in a 40-hour service week. Host sites are encouraged to allow the member to teleserve at least one day (or 8 hours) in a 40-hour service week. Remote work for employees doesn’t happen often, but it is available. Hannah often works Thursday afternoons from home to assist with childcare. Telework is available if needed, but generally the member would be expected to be in the office. We can set it up to be possible one day per week, if they would like that option. 4) Provide any additional insight into your organization’s workplace culture, such as collaborative versus independent workstyles, slow or fast pace, laid back versus formal, people or task-oriented, etc. All employees at Falcon Heights tend to be fairly independent. We work quietly for the most part but we all share a good sense of humor and can laugh at the little things. Mistakes are okay – we understand that they happen. We value honesty and hard work, but we tend to be fairly laid back as well. We are also very customer service oriented. We treat all members of the public with respect, regardless of what the question is. We will always try to find an answer to a question, but we are also okay with asking a resident to wait on a response if it means getting the best, most correct answer for them. There is nothing we do that cannot wait on a call back. Service Community / Housing 1) To aid in member relocation, please share three or more housing options with affordable rent, including complex name, address, and contact if available. Members will want to look in the surrounding areas around Falcon Heights for housing, most likely. There is not a ton in the City, but Roseville has a lot of options. We are also a mile from St. Paul and Minneapolis. I don’t have any specific housing options, but a quick apartments.com search can come up with a ton of recommendations in a good price range. I personally live in Hugo and recommend going farther out if more affordable options are needed. I would not go past the Blaine/Hugo/Lino Lakes area north, though. I would not recommend living south of the cities. 5 2) Please share any additional information about the service community that might be relevant for a MN GreenCorps member relocating to the area. Falcon Heights is a very special and unique community. We are home to the State Fair and the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, along with several large agricultural fields in the middle of downtown, however both of those entities are not tax paying, and we have no jurisdiction over them. Because of this, there can be some conflicting feelings between residents and these organizations. Because of our closeness to the University, many of our residents are former professors. We have a large population of highly educated residents, and they tend to be very vocal. Our City is very environment-focused, as well. While we may feel rural due to the agricultural fields, we are very much a first-ring suburb of St. Paul. 6 Community readiness and outreach member position Service position summary Strengthen host site capacity and community resilience to impacts of climate change by advancing sustainable practices, improving infrastructure, and increasing knowledge of residents and community-based organizations. Provide outreach, education, and assistance to raise understanding and increase the use of best practices on energy conservation and green transportation, stormwater and forestry, and waste reduction and recycling. Work with local government(s), tribal nations, school districts, nonprofit and community-based organizations, and other partners to adopt and implement sustainability best practices. Essential functions Provide community-based outreach, education, and assistance to individuals and community organizations through campaigns, presentations, events, trainings, workshops, social media, and other related activities. Outreach and assistance will focus on one or more of the topics listed below: Energy conservation and green transportation: • Promote energy conservation best practices that reduce energy usage at home, work, and school. • Encourage reduction of vehicle miles traveled and improved air quality through complete streets planning, education and practices, safe routes to school initiatives, and education on multi-modal transportation, mobility options, and active living. • Promote opportunities for adopting and expanding electric vehicle usage and charging infrastructure within communities. • Promote emission reductions to community members through educational campaigns targeting practices and behaviors that alleviate air pollution (i.e., air alert education, car-sharing, public transit, biking,), and those that contribute to air pollution (i.e., gas-powered lawn equipment, backyard fires, vehicle idling, single-occupancy vehicles, and low-efficiency wood-burning boilers/stoves/fireplaces). Stormwater and forestry: • Conduct outreach to increase awareness of stormwater and community forestry best practices that prevent or reduce water pollution and improve public lands. • Conduct and engage community members in community stormwater and forestry initiatives such as rain garden installation, tree planting, and invasive species removal volunteer events. • Provide outreach to communities on the harmful effects of chloride (i.e., road salt and water softener discharge), promote best management practices that reduce chloride application and discharge, and help host organizations in offering Smart Salting trainings in their communities. Waste reduction and recycling: • Promote resources to strengthen community resilience through waste prevention, recycling, composting/organics management, and food waste prevention. • Provide community outreach and education on local food production, food waste prevention, increasing the capture and distribution of reusable materials, preventing waste, and recycling. 7 • Support recycling efforts by providing on-site assessments, gathering baseline data, and conducting initial waste sorts, supporting recycling system setup, delivering resident education, and conducting post implementation data collection to track project effectiveness. Community sustainability: • Provide support to sustainability-related education activities. This could include the development and implementation of environmental events, fairs, or workshops to educate individuals. • Support outreach activities, including dissemination of messages via website and social networking. • Create, update, and distribute educational materials, helping ensure that educational materials are relevant, informative, and accurate. • Conduct surveys to collect pre/post information from participants in trainings, events, workshops, etc., on knowledge gained and/or behavior change to more sustainable environmental practices. • Mobilize volunteers to assist in the implementation of activities. Marginal functions (max 340 hours) • Assist with additional sustainability-related projects as outlined in the energy conservation and green transportation, stormwater and forestry, and waste reduction and recycling position descriptions. ITEM FOR DISCUSSION City of Falcon Heights, Minnesota __________________________ Item Climate Action Plan Description Falcon Heights applied for and received a $46,075 grant from the MPCA to create a Climate Action Plan. The City has received proposals from two consultants and is recommending to City Council to go with paleBLUE dot. Their proposal is attached. Budget Impact None. Attachment(s) • MPCA Climate Action Plan Work Plan • Proposal from paleBLUEdot for Climate Action Plan Action(s) Requested Staff requests Environment Commission discuss scope of Climate Action Plan and work plan. Meeting Date September 11, 2024 Agenda Item E-5 Attachment MPCA Climate Action Plan Work Plan Submitted By Hannah Lynch, Community Development Coordinator / Planner Page 1 of 2 Local Climate Action Grants Project workplan Doc Type: Grant Application Project title: City of Falcon Heights – Climate Action Plan Project description, deliverable(s), workplan tasks and subtasks Project description (maximum 250 words): In January 2023, the City of Falcon Heights, MN declared a climate crisis with a resolution acknowledging current and future changes to climate and the need for rapid action to address those changes. This resolution authorized the City, and gave support, to develop a Climate Action Plan with help from community input and professional consultation. Falcon Heights has long been a leading City in adopting environmental policies and projects, and commits to working for a just transition and climate mobilization effort by moving forward with a Climate Action Plan. Falcon Heights expects the outcome of a Climate Action Plan to assist the City with equitably planning for a climate-friendly future while also working to decrease our greenhouse gases and increase the sustainable and renewable nature of current energy use within the City. The City’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan lists many strong goals for the future, including reducing carbon emissions by 80% by 2030, securing 50% of the community’s electric energy from renewable energy sources by 2030 (including 10% from local renewable energy resources), and increasing participation of low- and moderate-income housing in energy efficiency programs so 80% of these buildings have completed deep energy efficiency retrofits by 2030. Establishing a Climate Action Plan will allow the City to focus on and establish what is specifically needed to reach these goals, and allow the City to prepare adequately for the future. Our hope is that this plan will allow us to reach or exceed these goals. Project deliverables: Climate Action Plan for the City of Falcon Heights – to include existing conditions, goals, strategies; also will include a survey which will be sent to residents, work sessions and engagement opportunities for residents and council members; design and branding Workplan: Task 1 of 6: Project Management Subtask 1a: Public / Staff / Commission Meetings Brief description of activities involved: Coordinate meetings to check-in with staff; prep for meetings with staff; manage meeting notes; schedule meetings/work sessions/engagement; compile slides and other materials for Commission and Council work sessions and agenda meetings. Subtask 1b: Ensure project is on time and on budget. Brief description of activities involved: Manage time and costs; provide receipts of all work completed; ensure meetings are scheduled and prepared for in a timely manner. Task 2 of 6: Research, Analysis, and Info Gathering Brief description of activities involved: Scan best practices from similar communities; review City existing conditions; meet with key staff and elected leaders to gather information; facilitate Regional Indicators Initiative Greenhouse Gas Inventory; analyze GHG reduction scenarios based on data. Task 3 of 6: Commission / Council Facilitation Brief description of activities involved: Design work sessions with staff guidance; facilitate work sessions with Commission and Council; provide overview of draft plan to Commission and Council; support staff conversations/communications with commissioners/councilors; assist with meetings for priority conversations requiring additional support or subject matter expertise; review proposed plan with Council/Commission during work session; present final plan during agenda meeting with Council for review and approval. Task 4 of 6: Community / Stakeholder Engagement Brief description of activities involved: Draft survey; facilitate gathering input on survey; support staff dissemination of survey; analyze survey results; summarize results to present to Commission and Council. Task 5 of 6: Writing Climate Plan / Finalization of Plan Page 2 of 2 Brief description of activities involved: Draft plan outline to align on key priorities, goals, and strategies with city leaders; review outline with staff; based on community input via survey and other methods, calibrate plan goals, strategies, and actions; incorporate best practices from other communities; make edits to plan based on Commission/Council input; light design/branding/formatting; submit final deliverable to staff with light design and branding. Task 6 of 6: Final Report and Project Deliverables Subtask 6a: Submit Grant Final Report Brief description of activities involved: Will provide a final grant project report using the MPCA template approximately one month prior to the end of the grant agreement on June 30, 2025, or at completion of the project, whichever occurs first. Will respond promptly to any requests by the MPCA authorized representative for additional information and/or corrections to the report. Timeframe: May-June 2025 Subtask 6b: Submit Project Deliverables Brief description of activities involved: Will provide electronic files of all project deliverables to the MPCA authorized representative prior to the end of the grant agreement on June 30, 2025, or at the completion of the project, whichever occurs first. Timeframe: May-June 2025 Proposal for Services City of Falcon Heights Climate Action Plan August 16,2024 Submitted By: 2 Table of Contents Cover Letter Page 1 Firm Profile Page 2 Understanding and Approach Page 3 Scope of Services Page 4 Proposed Project Timeline Page 21 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience Page 23 Qualificatfons - Resumes Page 30 Fee Proposal Page 33 1 Our mission is to hasten the transitfon to an authentfcally sustainable, no carbon economy and to elevate the public discourse. W/SBE Certffied paleBLUEdot Certfficatfons / Affiliatfons Team Contact Ted Redmond 2515 White Bear Avenue, A8 Suite 177 Maplewood, MN 55109 612-669-7056 tredmond@paleBLUEdot.llc Cover Letter Hannah B. Lynch Community Development Coordinator / Planner City of Falcon Heights 2077 West Larpenteur Avenue Falcon Heights, MN 55113 Subject: Request for Proposal for City of Falcon Heights Climate Action Plan Dear Hannah: We are excited at the prospect of working with the City of Falcon Heights in the development of the City’s Climate Actfon Plan. This is a visionary process to ultfmately empower the community in ensuring a climate resilient and sustainable future. Our interest in this project is straight forward: this project ’s scope and intent is deeply aligned with the mission, experience, and passion of paleBLUEdot - climate actfon planning is all we do. We see a future that is authentfcally sustainable, carbon neutral, and that supports equity and a higher quality of life for all. We believe the challenges we face in making that transitfon are, in fact, powerful opportunitfes to enhance livability, economic vitality, and equity. We believe the path to that future is arrived at through a process of collaboratfon, inquiry, and creatfvity. Being a part of that future is paleBLUEdot’s only mission. As a result, you will find this team to provide high quality service energetfcally delivered within a flexible fee structure. A certffied Minnesota W/SBE firm, paleBLUEdot has one of the most extensive and recent portiolios of sustainability actfon planning, GHG assessments, and climate planning within Minnesota and the Midwest. Ted Redmond, project manager and project lead, brings 30 years of experience working with municipalitfes, countfes, and state agencies on significant public planning projects, including over 60 Community Sustainability and Climate Planning Projects as well as GHG inventory efforts for communitfes and NGO’s in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, and The Netherlands. Colleen Redmond brings a unique capacity for facilitatfng youth dialogue, and interactfve “climate actfon design thinking” adult and youth workshops that provide the City with additfonal community engagement avenues. We are grateful for this opportunity to share informatfon with the City. We ’ve assembled this draft proposal to give the city detailed informatfon on how we would typically suggest a community like Falcon Heights develop a Climate Actfon Plan and to share what we believe the appropriate budget for this project may be. Should you have any questfons about our draft proposal, or wish to explore optfons further, please feel free to contact me at any tfme at the phone number or email address to the right. Sincerely paleBLUEdot Ted Redmond Principal, Vice President 2 paleBLUEdot, a Minnesota LLC and S/WBE Certffied Business and listed as a State of Minnesota Targeted Group Business and a Metropolitan Council Underutflized Business. paleBLUEdot is a sustainability, climate actfon, carbon management, and renewab le energy consultancy firm established in 2014. Our mission is to support the transitfon to a low -carbon economy through an array of sustainability assessment, consultancy, and planning services, and through educatfon that increases awareness and enhances public dialogue. Serving this dual mission of consultancy and educatfon, paleBLUEdot ’s principals represent a unique blend of professional expertfse: Colleen Redmond, President, is an accomplished educator, a curriculum designer, and Design Thinking consultant and leads the firm’s educatfon and awareness outreach programs. Ted Redmond, Vice President, is a registered architect with over 30 years of practfce providing assessment, programming, sustainability, and design services for well over 100 local, state and F ederal projects paleBLUEdot has extensive climate, carbon, and renewable energy planning experience from the scale of individual sites to community-wide efforts. Within the last three years alone, paleBLUEdot has completed over 60 relevant community planning efforts including sustainability plans, climate vulnerability studies, vulnerable populatfon assessments, climate actfon and adaptatfon plans, renewable energy potentfal studies and master plans, heat island mitfgatfon plans, and tree canopy and gree n infrastructure carbon sequestratfon master plans. The paleBLUEdot team has extensive consultfng experience with relevance to the skill set and services required by the City of Falcon Heights Climate Actfon Plan project. Our team functfons as a collaboratfve, interactfve team with fluid cross -discipline engagement promotfng creatfve exchange. About Our Name It all started with the amazing words of Carl Sagan. After seeing the 1990 photo taken by the Voyager I spacecraft, Mr. Sagan penned his thoughts, both poignant and profound, that, for us, capture the essence of our seemingly vast and indestructible planet. In his memorable and moving words, Mr. Sagan tells us that, while we may feel omnipotent and universally superior, in the cosmic scheme of things, we are but, “...a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.” These words, though, also give us hope and remind us how, even though our planet may be small and lost among the billions of other galaxies, it is still our home, our “pale blue dot”. Mr. Sagan’s words continue each day to inspire us here at paleBLUEdot and move us into action. We know our planet is both immensely fragile and infinitely precious. A love and fear for this wondrous Earth has spurred us to create avenues of environmental and social change for individuals and to build awareness of our impact on each other and our tiny planet. We work to provide effective and practical ways for each of us to make a meaningful positive impact on our precious world. Carl Sagan called us all to ‘...preserve and cherish that pale blue dot…”, and we believe, through the efforts of us all, we can do just that. Image: NASA 3 Understanding and Approach Project Understanding: The purpose of the City of Falcon Heights Climate Actfon Plan project is to create a comprehensive and innovatfve plan to guide decision making, policy, and program development to meet the City ’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductfon and climate resilience goals. The vision established by the plan will outline how the City can equitably achieve c limate actfon. The vision will be inspiring while the strategies that support it will be actfonable in nature. The strategies should cover a variety of themes such as natural resources conservatfon and restoratfon, energy productfon and consumptfon, climate change, resilience, and local governance. Delivering services in support of innovatfve sustainability, energy, and climate actfon plans is paleBLUEdot ’s sole mission. Our project approach has been designed through our numerous planning efforts to deliver robust and effectfve Climate Actfon Plans . Based on our project experience, we’ve observed that successful planning efforts support: Grounding in data and science Leveraging broad stakeholder wisdom Recognizing community needs Transitfoning into actfon The paleBLUEdot project approach described in this proposal is based on these observatfons and our experience in crafting successful climate plans. Our approach includes: Baseline Research and Documentatfon (Grounding in data and science): The paleBLUEdot team believes the best Climate Actfon Plans must begin with a clear understanding of the community ’s existfng climate and sustainability indicators, vulnerabilitfes, and opportunitfes. With a strong understanding of a community ’s “baseline” conditfons, effectfve and meaningful goal setting can occur, rooted not only in a vision for the future, but also an understa nding of the present. Once clear goals are established, actfon planning can take place to establish over arching strategies and detai led actfons to achieve those goals. Collaboratfve Planning (Leveraging broad stakeholder wisdom): The paleBLUEdot climate planning effort is characterized by a strong collaboratfve approach in which the ultfmate plan is co - developed by our team, the City and representatfves from the community. We ’ve found this highly collaboratfve approach to be key in developing plans which are more readily embraced and implemented to make progress on community climate goals. Our team contfnuously review and draw inspiratfon from sustainability and climate actfon plans produced around the country. Our ACTIONFinder tool enables that inspiratfon and best practfce exposure inform the collaboratfve development of each of our climate plans. Inclusive Community Engagement (Recognizing community needs): Meaningful community engagement provides outlets for the local community and its residents to speak and partfcipate, as well as to feel heard, understood, and valued. To achieve this, paleBLUEdot collaborates with our clients to design and implement a community engagement process that empowers all stakeholders, partfcularly under -represented and vulnerable communitfes, residents, businesses, instftutfons and other stakeholders will be provided with opportunitfes to become actfvely involved in the development and planning of the community’s long-range plan and evaluatfon of climate and other environmental issues. Implementatfon Tools (Transitfoning into actfon): Successful climate actfon plans are long-range documents which need to guide actfon over tfme. More than other municipal plans, climate actfon plans seek to influence and guide community wide actfon – climate actfon implementatfon is for everyone. Many communitfes struggle with the transitfon from planning to successful implementatfon. To support our clients in “hitting the ground running” our project approach includes a significant amount of tools to support implementatfon of the completed plan. A detailed descriptfon of our project approach and proposed scope of services is provided in the next sectfon. 4 Scope of Services paleBLUEdot’s project approach and community engagement approach, described below, have been specifically built around the City’s prioritfes. Our scope of services includes extensive assessment of existfng conditfons in the community, development of the Falcon Heights Climate Actfon Plan, development of implementatfon support tools, and robust community engagement. The following is our proposed scope of services in response to the RFP: Project Kickoff Successful project launch through a kick-off meetfng to confirm relevant past and current studies and data from the City; reaffirm project goals and objectfves; confirm project scope, methodology, and schedule; and identffy respectfve project contacts. Th e Team will also begin identffying engagement groups as outlined in the engagement sectfon of this proposal. At, or following, the kick-off meetfng, paleBLUEdot will provide a Climate Actfon Plan on-boarding questfonnaire and data request to support straightiorward data request and collectfon as well as providing the team with an opportunity to rapidly “get up to speed” on existfng relevant city policies and programs. City Interactfon: Kick-off meetfng Deliverables: Review of City data/reports and relevant policies; paleBLUEdot Climate Actfon Plan On-Boarding questfonnaire and data request. Baseline Research and Documentatfon paleBLUEdot believes effectfve, meaningful, and community specific climate actfon planning is grounded in robust data collectf on and assessment of community existfng conditfons metrics. Establishing comprehensive baseline data is a necessary element tha t provides a point from which to inventory what you have before you set out to improve it, and from there, aid in identffying a nd establishing strategies, and measuring the progress of them. The broader the baseline data available, the more effectfve goalsetting and actfon planning can be. As such, the paleBLUEdot climate actfon planning project approach includes a robust assessment of community existfng conditfons and baseline indicators. The Baseline Research and Documentatfon portfon of the climate actfon planning effort will culminate in a Climate Actfon Base line Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report. This document will summarize community baseline indicators and conditfons and will put forth preliminary goal and strategy recommendatfons for consideratfon as foundatfon to beginning the development of the Climate Actfon Plan. The document will also provide preliminary GHG reductfon modeling associated with the preliminary goal recommendatfons. The Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report will include all sectors antfcipated in the Climate Actfon Plan including: Buildings and Energy, Transportatfon and Land Use, Waste Management, Water and Wastewater, Local Food and Agriculture, Greenspace and Trees, Health and Safety / Climate Adaptatfon, and Climate / Sustainable Economy sectors. The community indicators and existfng conditfons assessed and summarized are outlined next. Example Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report 5 Baseline Research and Documentatfon (contfnued) Vulnerability Assessment The paleBLUEdot team will develop a Vulnerability Assessment and Climate Hazards Report for the City of Falcon Heights. The assessment will include a review of the current and projected climate change impacts the City should antfcipate, a review of climate change risk/hazards, and an identfficatfon of vulnerable populatfons within the community and possible impacts and ri sks associated with projected climate change for the region. paleBLUEdot will begin the Vulnerability Assessment with a review o f relevant studies and data for the region. The paleBLUEdot team will map the vulnerable populatfons within the City. These assessments will provide a basis for understanding vulnerabilitfes and resources which will support the decision making process needed for identffying and prioritf zing climate adaptatfon measures to be included in the final Climate Actfon Plan. The Vulnerability Assessment will align with Cl imate Risk and Adaptfon Framework and Taxonomy (CRAFT) methodologies. The Assessment will focus on city -wide vulnerabilitfes with a partfcular focus on climate vulnerable populatfons to ensure all populatfons benefit from proposed implementatfon measures. Broad Climate Change Impacts and Risk Factors The paleBLUEdot team will identffy and summarize the broad climate change metrics already experienced, projected climate change impacts, and risk factors at a regional level. Data on the region will be collected from the US Natfonal Climate Asse ssment as well as the NOAA Integrated Sciences and Assessments Centers, NOAA Great Lakes Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (GLISA), University of Michigan Graham Climate Instftute, Natfonal Oceanic and Atmospheric Administratfon, USDA Climate Hubs, USDA Forestry Service, and FEMA. State of State specific data will be collected and summarized from State and Natfonal agencies, and regional university data sources. In additfon, detailed climate projectfons based on Natfonal Center for Atmospheric Research will be developed for the City of Falcon Heights. Climate Risk Factors The paleBLUEdot team will identffy and quantffy the primary climate risk factors facing the City of Falcon Heights. Hazards will be assess for current risk level (probability x consequence) of the hazard, as well as the relevant sectors, asset class, or ser vices that are expected to be most impacted by the hazard. The risk factors to be quantffied will include: Future climate projectfons a nd impacts, Flood data, risk, and histories, Air Quality consideratfons, Food Environment and Food Access consideratfons, Popula tfon health data and characteristfcs, and Energy resilience and cost burden. Quantffying City Vulnerability By overlaying the data and mapping of vulnerable populatfons with that of the climate risk factors and community resources, t he paleBLUEdot team will describe in detail the specific vulnerabilitfes for the City. The “order of magnitude” for each risk as well as the areas within the city of vulnerability to each risk will be identffied, quantffied, and mapped. Identfficatfon of Metrics, Indicators, and Sources paleBLUEdot will include an appendix with data sources and links to publicly available metrics and indicators which can be dr awn from for the establishment progress measurements for the strategies and actfons included in the final plan. Please see “Strategy and Actfon Measurement and Metrics” under Climate Actfon Plan for more. Scope of Services Example Vulnerability Assessment 6 Baseline Research and Documentatfon (contfnued) Greenhouse Gas Inventory Greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory data for any given year should be understood to be a simple “snapshot”. Emissions can vary year-to-year based on changing weather patterns and behaviors. Long -range GHG emissions forecastfng is not possible to do effectfvely with a single year of existfng inventory data. To support improved long-range forecastfng, the paleBLUEdot team suggests producing annual Community-wide and Municipal Operatfons GHG inventories for three subject years including 2015, 2019, and 2023 (years modeled will be finalized based on data availability). The development of the GHG inventory will facil itated by the paleBLUEdot Citywide Integrated Inventory and Reductfon Modeling Tool which has been developed and refined through our past GHG modeling on dozens of inventories and plans. The paleBLUEdot team will lead data collectfon for the inventory effort. The data collectfon will include collectfon of two types of data: raw use/actfvity data (energy use, transportatfon mileage and VMT, etc) as well as emission factor data. Emission fact or data will support the development of appropriate community -specific emissions factors which can then be applied to the raw use/ actfvity data to calculate community appropriate GHG emissions by category. Emission factor data includes items such as utflity- specific emissions profiles or regional eGRID values. GHG Emissions Forecastfng for 2030, 2040, and 2050 Our team will complete long-range GHG emissions modeling using This forecast will be a “business as usual” forecast scenario to antfcipate future emissions for the City of Falcon Heights assuming no further emissions reductfons actfons are taken. We will build the forecast scenario to antfcipate emissions changes through 2050 in each of the inventory emission categories as well as total emissions. This forecast will provide a valuable tool for the City in designing and prioritfzing GHG emissions reductfons strategies as well as supportfng the measurement of strategy reductfon success. The forecast will be based on a range of variables as data is available, including: populatfon projectfons, projected climate change impacts including Cooling Degree Day and Heatfng Degree Day projectfons, projected emissions factor changes, and antfcipated federal vehicle fuel efficiency standards (e.g., CAFE). GHG Report and Calculatfons Summary paleBLUEdot will prepare a Greenhouse Gas Inventory Report summarizing the methodology and findings of the city-wide inventory and municipal operatfons emissions assessment. The inventory report will be used as a foundatfon for GHG emission reductfon modeling of select Climate Actfon Plan strategies. Please see “Reductfon Potentfal” under Sustainability Plan for more. Scope of Services Example GHG Inventory Summary report. 7 Scope of Services Baseline Research and Documentatfon (contfnued) Renewable Energy Potentfals In support of development of effectfve renewable energy goalsetting and to establish strategies addressing renewable energy development, paleBLUEdot will conduct a city-wide rooftop, ground mounted, and “carport” (also known as structured canopy) solar pv potentfals study including economic and environmental benefits with a focus on the equity potentfal of renewable energy - both potentfal for serving low income communitfes as well as equitable economic development. The intent of this document is to provide a high-level estfmate of renewable energy potentfal so that the planning team will be empowered to create near and long-term renewable energy targets and implementatfon strategies based on community specific opportunity that can be both visionary and achievable. City-Wide Ground Cover, Tree Canopy, and Carbon Sequestratfon Baseline paleBLUEdot will conduct a baseline assessment of City -wide ground cover and tree canopy conditfons to support high quality resilience and adaptatfon goal setting and actfon exploratfon for ground cover conditfons. This baseline will be a an expan sion of informatfon currently available through existfng documents including any street tree inventories or forestry management plans already established by the city. This assessment will us the USDA iTree Canopy tool to review a broad range of ground cover conditfons (grass, water, wetland, impervious surfaces, tree canopy) city-wide as well as by census tract. All baseline data will generated by census tract with a standard error (SE) of 2% or less. Estfmates will be made for annual carbon sequestratfon r ates, carbon stock, stormwater runoff and green infrastructure uptake, pollutfon absorptfon rates (CO, O3, NO2, SO2, partfculate pollutfon), estfmated electricity and natural gas savings due to tree canopy, and tree canopy economic value. Ground cover characteristfcs will be linked to census tract level demographic data to support understanding of impacts on and potentfals f or the city’s vulnerable populatfons. The study will include an illustratfon long-range tree canopy goal with an estfmate of new trees required annually to meet the illustrated goal. Heat Island / Micro Heat Island Characteristfcs Within the ground cover study, paleBLUEdot will conduct a baseline assessment of city -wide heat island characteristfcs and conditfons. The existfng baseline will identffy impervious surface conditfons and coverage (sidewalks, roadway, parking, and building) and compile the data in subcategories of “light” and “dark” conditfons. Baseline calculatfons will be made to estfmated overall heat island contributfon coefficient by census tract. The intent of this study will be to begin identffying links between ground cover characteristfcs, climate change impacts, and resilience opportunitfes so that the planning team will be empowered to establish ground cover, heat island, and tree canopy goals based on community specific data. Example Renewable Energy Potentfals report. Example Ground Cover, Tree Canopy, Carbon Sequestratfon and Heat Island report. 8 Baseline Research and Documentatfon (contfnued) Additfonal Community Indicators The following are additfonal community indicators that will be reviewed for inclusion in the Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report: Baseline Buildings and Energy Metric paleBLUEdot will create summary of existfng building and energy metrics within the community including community wide residentfal, commercial /industrial energy use profiles, identfficatfon of existfng high performance Certffied LEED, Certffie d Net Zero, and ENERGY STAR Certffied building stock. We will create scenario illustratfons of example total community -wide residentfal and commercial building stock energy efficiency potentfal as those that could be achieved through strategies including buildi ng energy benchmarking, commercial energy audits, commercial retro -commissioning, residentfal weatherizatfon programs, community wide LED light replacement energy savings or others. Baseline Energy and Housing Burden “Energy Burden” and “Housing Burden” are the percentages of household income that goes toward energy costs and housing costs respectfvely. Households with high energy burden (over 6%) or high housing burden (over 30%) tend to have higher vulnerabilitfes to environmental, climate, and social impacts. Carefully designed energy and transportatfon actfons in Clima te Actfon Plans can help mitfgate these issues. paleBLUEdot will collect, analyze, and summarize existfng Falcon Heights commun ity energy and housing burden indicators. Our work will draw from multfple data sources including the state, county, US Departme nt of Energy, and the US Census Bureau. Baseline Walk Score/ Bike Score Heat Mapping paleBLUEdot will access walkability and bikeability baseline data and heat maps developed by Walk Score, People For Bikes, an d others as available. A community’s walkability and bikeability are key to understanding the current baseline and opportunitfes for advancing transportatfon sustainability. Additfonally, understanding differences in walkability from neighborhood to neighbo rhood can help to highlight equity and empowerment opportunitfes. Public Transit Benefit Mapping Baseline Understanding the current baseline social and economic benefits of public transit, mapped across the City, provides a solid foundatfon for prioritfzing transit related investments and identfficatfon of effectfve strategies for reduced VMT and increa sed walkability and livability. paleBLUEdot will access data through AllTransit which draws from General Transit Feed Specificatf on Data (GTFS), a natfonal dataset assembled for all transit stops, routes, and frequency. Using the tool, we will capture info rmatfon on: Overall Transit Performance, Transit metrics, and Transit gap mapping of census tracts where the transit service is less than typical for similar areas in the US. Housing and Transit Affordability Baseline Housing affordability is widely recognized as a key metric of economic, social, and even environmental sustainability of a community. The traditfonal measure of affordability recommends that housing cost no more than 30% of household income. However, that benchmark fails to take into account transportatfon costs, which are typically a household ’s second-largest expenditure and are deeply intertwined housing conditfons. Using the H+T Index Tool we will capture housing and transit affordability metrics city-wide. Scope of Services 9 Baseline Research and Documentatfon (contfnued) Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons Report As noted, The Baseline Research and Documentatfon portfon of the climate actfon planning effort will culminate in a Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report. This document will summarize community baseline indicators and conditfons, include illustratfons of example GHG emission reductfon and sustainability strategies, and will pu t forth preliminary goal and strategy recommendatfons for consideratfon as foundatfon to beginning the development of the Climate Actfon Plan. The Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report as well as all of the other process document s created in this initfal Baseline Research and Documentatfon phase are intended to provide as much community -specific data as possible to support a robust, collaboratfve planning effort. As process documents, they should not bee seen as final documen ts, but understood as extensive research in order to help the planning team understand “where the community is at” and to begin to understand links between potentfal goals, outcomes, and the order -of-magnitude efforts necessary to achieve them. City Interactfon: Data Analysis and Baseline Review Meetfng(s), assist in data collectfon (limited staff involvement antfcipated) Deliverables: Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons to include indicators and preliminary goal recommendatfons for all plan sectors; Vulnerability Assessment report, GHG Emissions Forecast, Renewable Energy Potentfals report (electronic documents). NOTE: as planning process documents, a detailed review and revision of the Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons document and related study documents is not included in paleBLUEdot’s project schedule or fee. Scope of Services Example Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report illustratfng additfonal community indicators and sector level goal recommendatfons. 10 11 Climate Actfon Plan Development The paleBLUEdot team proposes to develop a Climate Actfon Plan which integrates broad Climate Actfon strategies and actfons along with both climate mitfgatfon (greenhouse gas reductfon) as well as climate adaptatfon measures for the City of Falcon Heights. The primary goal for the Climate Actfon Plan is to identffy cost effectfve strategies and detailed actfons to addre ss the City’s sustainability and climate actfon goals. Effectfve strategies can meet these goals while improving quality of life, increasing community equity, building prosperity, and enhancing community resilience. The Climate Actfon Plan planning effort should fo cus on prioritfzing strategies and actfons to ensure that the final plan will be achievable. The actfons included in the final implementatfon plan should be vetted as the actfons most likely to achieve success towards the community ’s goals while being appropriate for the City of Falcon Heights specifically. The Climate Actfon Plan should provide a format to coordinate the City’s initfatfves and department actfvitfes to achieve consistency with the community’s climate goals while providing metrics for measuring progress. An effectfve Climate Actfon Plan must also recognize that long-range success will be achieved only through community-wide buy-in and should include an identfficatfon of actfons to facilitate community educatfon, communicatfon, and positfve behavior change. Collaboratfve Approach The paleBLUEdot team believes that the most effectfve Climate Actfon plans come from a highly collaboratfve process. Our approach for developing climate actfon strategies and actfons for the City of Falcon Heights will be built around a collabora tfve and interactfve process. We will work with the City to finalize the assembly of a Climate Actfon Plan Team who will work collaboratfvely with the paleBLUEdot team in the exploratfon, creatfon, review, refinement, and prioritfzatfon of climate actf on goals, strategies, and detailed actfons. Through our collaboratfve approach, the final Climate Actfon Plan will be informed by regional and natfonal best practfces, b ut rooted in a deep understanding of the City of Falcon Heights community and municipal operatfons. We propose a Climate Actfon Plan team of 20-40 individuals assembled from key City staff, City commissions, and community representatfves. paleBLUEdot will facilitate the work of the team and development of the plan ’s goals, strategies, and actfons over a series of up to seven workshop sessions. Please see “Planning Team Engagement” for more. Goalsetting – Climate Mitfgatfon, Adaptatfon, and Resilience Targets The paleBLUEdot team will work with the City of Falcon Heights and the Climate Actfon Plan Team to establish sector level goa ls. Sector goals are antfcipated to address broad Climate Actfon Plan consideratfons as well as both climate adaptatfon and clima te mitfgatfon (such as emissions reductfon and renewable energy targets). The research and documentatfon compiled in the Baseli ne Research and Documentatfon effort culminatfng in the Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report detailed on previous pages will provide a foundatfon for the team’s in this work. Final goals will be collaboratfvely established with the Climate Actfon Plan team. To support this critfcal next step, we wi ll provide a survey of community -wide Climate Actfon, greenhouse gas emissions reductfon, and climate adaptatfon goals from peer citfes in the state and region. Data on comparable communitfes will come from our team ’s recent and on-going 40+ regional community GHG inventories, as well as comparable community data collected from the C40 Community Comparison Dashboard, CDP Citfes Reportfng Dataset, and the Global Covenant of Mayors Data Dashboard. All of these efforts will allow us to assess and presen t a range of goals for the Climate Actfon Plan team and City to consider as a foundatfon for their collaboratfve consensus building on the goals appropriate for the City of Falcon Heights. City Interactfon: Planning Team Goalsetting Workshop meetfng(s) Deliverables: Draft Sector Goals Document (electronic document) Scope of Services 12 Climate Actfon Plan Development (contfnued) Strategy and Actfon Development The process to develop Falcon Heights specific measures will use the previously described Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report and will include an identfficatfon of existfng regional measures. Our team will also s haring our extensive natfonal measures database and Best Practfces. Honing City of Falcon Heights specific measures will happen thr ough collaboratfve Climate Actfon Plan Team efforts outlined in the “Planning Team Engagement” sectfon of this proposal. Our process for defining climate actfon strategies and actfons includes: Regional and Natfonal Strategy Review Through our Climate Actfon and climate actfon planning work with communitfes, paleBLUEdot believes collaboratfvely developing community-specific strategies with the broad stakeholders represented in the Climate Actfon Plan Team is the most effectfve planning process. We also understand, however, it can be difficult for Climate Actfon Plan Team members to know where to beg in. Climate Actfon Plans encompass such a broad range of consideratfons in our communitfes that the task of exploring what may ev en be possible can seem insurmountable. We’ve discovered that simply being able to see what others have done before us can ignite a community’s own ideas and give clarity to how a community wishes to approach their own solutfons. This led us to create the ACTIONFinder tool. The ACTIONFinder tool is a robust database of municipal Climate Actfon Plan strategies and actfons from across the United Sta tes. The over 4,000 strategies and actfons included in the ACTIONFinder come from citfes large and small from nearly every region of the country. The ACTIONFinder is designed as a searchable, collaboratfve tool to support Climate Actfon Plan Teams and stakeholder groups in exploring a range of strategies and actfons as they work to visualize what would be most effectfve and appropriate for their own community. Using this tool, paleBLUEdot will develop a natfonal strategy best practfce summary of actfons organized by Climate Actfon Pl an sector and an identfficatfon of actfon recommendatfons for inclusion in the final Climate Actfon Plan. The actfon review sum mary and recommendatfons will support the Climate Actfon Plan Team workshop process, please see “Planning Team Engagement” for more. Scope of Services paleBLUEdot ACTIONFinder Tool and instructfon booklet screenshots 13 Scope of Services Climate Actfon Plan Development (contfnued) Strategy and Actfon Quantfficatfon and Evaluatfon For each recommended City of Falcon Heights Climate Actfon Plan strategies and actfons, paleBLUEdot and the Climate Actfon Pl an Team will conduct a range of analyses to inform the selectfon of measures to be included in the Climate Actfon Plan. Specifi cally, review will include: Reductfon Potentfal Our team will analyze the draft portiolio of strategies for their GHG reductfon potentfal, their contributfon to one or more GHG reductfon targets, and impacts on key metrics like energy use and vehicle miles traveled. GHG reductfon modeling will use th e Citywide Integrated Inventory and Reductfon Modeling Tool described in the GHG Inventory sectfon above. This tool enables ou r team to directly integrate all strategy level GHG reductfon potentfals with City specific existfng GHG data and Business as U sual forecasts. Actfon Screening Criteria To assist in the refinement and prioritfzatfon of strategies and actfons on which the Climate Actfon Plan should focus, paleB LUEdot will work with the Climate Actfon Plan Team to identffy specific criteria for screening, reviewing, and prioritfzing actfons to be developed for the plan. Actfon screening criteria may include consideratfons such as community support, co -benefits, feasibility, and community capacity for implementatfon. The process of determining City of Falcon Heights screening criteria will begin b y reviewing paleBLUEdot’s database of Actfon Screening Criteria used by communitfes throughout the region. From this initfal database review, the Team will be empowered to narrow and define actfon screening criteria of their own, ultfmately building a consensus on the criteria against which potentfal actfons should be measured. Social Equity Measures may be reviewed for compatfbility with the City’s social equity goals. Additfonal Social Equity “filters” may be collaboratfvely developed between the City, Climate Actfon Plan Team, and paleBLUEdot. This interactfve review process will also look to identffy potentfal additfonal measures focused specifically on Social Equity strategies compatfble with the Climate A ctfon Plan goals. Prioritfzatfon Once we have the comprehensive list of potentfal strategies and actfons evaluated, they will be reviewed with the Climate Actf on Plan Team through a collaboratfve workshop session for prioritfzatfon and refinement. These lists will form the basis of the draft Climate Actfon Plan as well as review and input by City Staff, the Climate Actfon Plan Team, and the Community Engagement eff ort outlined in our “Community Engagement” sectfon of this proposal. City Interactfon: Update in team progress meetfng(s); Climate Actfon Plan workshop sessions Deliverables: Use of paleBLUEdot ACTIONFinder tool for regional and natfonal best practfce review (electronic document), Actfon Screening Criteria, Draft Climate Actfon Plan (goals, strategies, and detailed actfons list) (electronic document) 14 Scope of Services Climate Actfon Plan Development (contfnued) Strategy and Actfon Measurement and Metrics Establishing appropriate metrics to measure and track progress against sector goals is key to supportfng the implementatfon o f a Climate Actfon Plan. Indicators used in tracking progress need to be appropriate to the goal, up-to-date, readily available, easily understood, and repeatable. As the climate actfon strategies and detailed actfons are finalized, the paleBLUEdot team will establish recommended metrics against which progress can be measured throughout the plan implementatfon phase. As indicated in the Existfng Conditfons sectfon of this proposal, paleBLUEdot will identffy metrics, indicators, and data source s which the City can draw from to establish desired metrics for progress tracking. Cost Benefit Analysis The paleBLUEdot Citywide Integrated Inventory and Reductfon Modeling Tool includes a cost benefit analysis module. The modul e is linked to tool’s GHG reductfon modeling modules which calculate the community -wide energy consumptfon and emissions reductfons resultfng from the strategic goals developed for the Climate Actfon Plan. The tool can then be used for community -wide cumulatfve cost benefit calculatfons using the modeled raw energy consumptfon savings, and modeled / rule -of-thumb investments related to key strategic goals such as energy savings, distributed renewable installatfons, EV adoptfon, and wast e reductfon. The resultfng calculatfons can then be broken down to present the total projected cost benefit based on Climate A ctfon Plan sector (Transportatfon, Buildings, and waste management sectors only) or community sector (residentfal sector, commercia l sector). These cumulatfve community-side cost and savings projectfons and should be understood as order-of-magnitude projectfons. Detailed costs and return on investment estfmates for individual actfons is not included in the planning effort . Cost benefit calculatfons will also include a calculatfon for a localized social cost of carbon. This social cost of carbon will enable the cost benefit analysis to also include a projectfon for the value of the avoided carbon impacts associated with the Climate Ac tfon Plan GHG reductfons. The localized social cost of carbon will be calculated using the City’s current GHG emissions as calculated in the GHG inventory in combinatfon with modeled county-level climate change cost impacts on agriculture, energy costs, labor productfvity, property crime, and violent crime to arrive at a localized cost of carbon impacts on a per metric ton basis. Climate Actfon Plan Finalizatfon paleBLUEdot will develop a Draft Climate Actfon Plan and will lead a review with the Climate Actfon Plan Team. The draft pl an document will be provided to the City to support a review by key City Staff. To support an effectfve review and finalizatfon process, paleBLUEdot antfcipates receiving a single consolidated review document from the city which provides a unified, consensus directfon on draft plan refinement desired. While city staff and planning team reviews are occurring, paleBLUEdot will suppo rt a review process with the broader community as outlined in the Engagement sectfon of this proposal. This public review period will include a preliminary review with the City Council as coordinated with City of Falcon Heights project management staff. Foll owing the review period, the paleBLUEdot team will revise the Draft Climate Actfon Plan goals, strategies, and actfons based on the input received, develop a final Climate Actfon Plan document with plan narratfves, graphics, charts, and figures. City Interactfon: Community Engagement Meetfngs; City Board review presentatfon (as desired/directed); City staff partfcipatfon in Climate Actfon Plan Team workshops, Consolidatfon of Draft Climate Actfon Plan staff review comment consensus into a single consolidated review document. Deliverables: Final Climate Actfon Plan narratfve report with Climate Actfon Goals, Strategies, and Actfons; Public presentatfon overviewing the Draft Climate Actfon Plan goals, strategies, and actfons; Supportfng documents, data, and calculatfons gathered or created in the course of this effort; 15 16 Scope of Services Implementatfon Support Tools Once a Climate Actfon Plan is finalized and approved by City Council, we find that transitfoning to the implementatfon phase can be a bit overwhelming, challenging, and a tfme consuming transitfon for many City governments. “Changing gears” from planning into initfatfng actfon within the City government structure, residents, and businesses can be challenging and difficult to qu ickly build the momentum needed to sustain long-term actfon. As a mission driven practfce, it is important to paleBLUEdot to do all w e can to help our clients to “hit the ground running.” To help with that, we are offering a number of implementatfon support tools for use by City staff as well as by residents and businesses. Below are the Implementatfon Tools proposed: Implementatfon Matrix paleBLUEdot will provide an excel based implementatfon matrix tool for use by City staff in tracking and monitoring the implementatfon progress of all Climate Actfon Plan strategies and actfons. The Implementatfon Matrix will include informatfo n on implementatfon responsibilitfes by city department. The Matrix will include space for annual dashboard/scorecard staff repor tfng on actfon status and performance data reportfng to provide a transparent process to monitor and update progress of the Climat e Actfon Plan actfons. To support ease of use and collaboratfon by many City staff, the Matrix will be a highly searchable database enabling searche s by Climate Actfon Plan sector, climate actfon strategy grouping, department/staff responsible for implementatfon, and by key wor d/ phrase. The Implementatfon Matrix will also retain any notes and comments which were made by all Climate Actfon Plan Team members during the planning phase so that City staff will have ready access to those records. The Matrix will also include, where applicable, an identfficatfon of other communitfes that have similar actfons included in their climate or Climate Actfon plan – enabling City staff to identffy peer communitfes who may be contacted in the future to share implementatfon observatfons and lessons learned. Example Municipal Policies and Ordinances (pro bono) Most Climate Actfon Plans include actfons which ultfmately require the development of a City policy or ordinance in order to implement fully. paleBLUEdot has found that the development of policies and ordinances can frequently be made easier if the City department responsible for developing the policy has access to successful example policies or other “best practfce” guidance. To support the City in “hitting the ground running” with respect to policy and ordinance development, paleBLUEdot will research, identffy, and curate example policies and ordinances for actfons in the final CAP plan which require policy or ordinance development (unless, of course, examples are not yet available). paleBLUEdot will create a webpage resource for the City will all of the example policies and ordinances organized by Climate Actfon Plan sector. City Implementatfon Team Support (pro bono) paleBLUEdot will prepare and provide a recommended City Implementatfon Team structure to support on-going city implementatfon efforts. This will include an outline of recommended team structure, intent, and mission as well as the development of preliminary team meetfng agendas outlining the potentfal annual team focus and process supportfng plan implementatfon. The structure will include a recommended approach for on-going Climate Actfon Plan implementatfon cost and staffing needs identfficatfon and integratfon into the City’s annual budgetfng process. paleBLUEdot example Policy and Ordinance Resource 17 Scope of Services Implementatfon Support Tools (contfnued) City Policy Alignment Review Tool (pro bono) paleBLUEdot will provide a memorandum tool to support review of proposed city actfons, policies, and ordinances against the goals and actfons of the Climate Actfon Plan. The intent of the tool is to be considered as a review mechanism used consiste ntly to support city council and commission motfon consideratfons. The tool will enable actfons to understood in relatfon to thei r support or alignment with the Climate Actfon Plan during consideratfon. Through use of the tool consideratfon of the goals, strategies, and actfons of the Climate Actfon Plan can begin to be integrated into all of the city ’s policy decisions. Project Management and Communicatfons Project Management, Accessibility, and Responsiveness. The paleBLUEdot team project lead will be Ted Redmond, who will manage the team’s efforts on a day-to-day basis. Ted will functfon as the communicatfon point of contact assuring that team communicatfons are maintained, shared, and acted upon. Ted will lead regular progress updates and project management meetfngs with City ’s Project Manager throughout the project tfmeframe (via phone or in-person). In additfon, Ted will be accessible to the City of Falcon Heights via phone, email and text message on a daily basis as needed by the City. All phone calls and e-mails will be responded to within one business day of receipt. Managing Climate Actfon Plan Team Communicatfons paleBLUEdot will support on-going engagement and exchange of informatfon to the Climate Actfon Plan Team through a project team website. The team website will include all existfng conditfons reports developed; meetfng agendas, records, and content ; access to the ACTIONFinder tool; and additfonal resources supportfng team members efforts. Presentatfons paleBLUEdot will collaborate with the City in finalizing the plan for presentatfons, however, we preliminarily antfcipate up to three presentatfons to the City Council. The first presentatfon is recommended at an interim period following the developmen t of the Climate Actfon Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons report. The second presentatfon is recommended as a review of the Draft Climate Actfon Plan, with the third occurring as a final Climate Actfon Plan presentatfo n. The paleBLUEdot team proposes to work with the City staff to finalize the intent and schedule of these presentatfons. 18 19 Scope of Services Planning Team Engagement We antfcipate working with the City to establish a Climate Actfon Plan team who will work collaboratfvely with the paleBLUEdot team in the exploratfon, creatfon, review, refinement, and prioritfzatfon of mitfgatfon and adaptatfon strategies. We antfcipate a Climate Actfon Plan team of 20-40 individuals or more assembled from key City staff and commissions; associated public agencies like the County, school district, representatfves from vulnerable populatfons, under represented community members, community residents, the business community, and environmental groups. Assembly of this planning team should focus on supportfng the City ’s equity, inclusion, and engagement goals. Our proposed plan for climate actfon plan team engagement, to be reviewed and refined with the City includes up to six sessions over the tfmeframe of the project. Below is a summary of these sessions: 1: CAP Team Introductfon/ Kickoff Meetfng (In person or virtual) for Project Kick -off to review project scope, process, goals and expectatfons, tfmeline, and to confirm Steering Committee engagement. 2: CAP Sub-Team / Sector Goal Setting Meetfng (virtual recommended or in person optfonal) for team collaboratfon and preliminary consensus development on sector level strategic goals. 3: Four Actfon Development Workshop sessions (virtual): Workshop A: Goal Setting finalizatfon, collaboratfvely establish actfon evaluatfon criteria; initfal team discussions on potentfal actfons to achieve goals; train Climate Actfon Plan team on paleBLUEdot ACTION Finder tool. Inter-meeting activity: Sub-teams use ACTION Finder tool to explore potential strategies and actions; Sub-teams to consider range of possible action screening criteria and develop recommended shortlist of criteria. Workshop B: Climate Actfon Plan Sub Teams report on potentfal strategy review; Climate Actfon Plan Team “brainstorming” additfonal community specific measures and strategies; Climate Actfon Plan Team collaboratfon for identfficatfon of actfon prioritfes. Inter-meeting activity: Climate Action Plan Sub-Teams explore development of additional strategies and actions based on Climate Action Plan Team discussion in workshop B. Workshop C: Climate Actfon Plan Sub Teams evaluatfon of shortlisted actfons based on actfon screening criteria. Finalizatfon of prioritfzed strategies and actfons. Inter-meeting activity: paleBLUEdot to develop final draft Climate Action Plan 4: Meetfng to review Draft Climate Actfon Plan (In person or virtual). 20 Scope of Services Community Engagement The paleBLUEdot community engagement approach will focus on community -wide input and equity input. The engagement effort will occur in two phases, the first phase will coincide with the initfal planning efforts and will seek broad community input . The second phase will occur once a draft plan has been created and will seek input on the draft plan itself. The following is an overview of our proposed community engagement process: On-Line Surveys: To expand the opportunity for community input and involvement, the paleBLUEdot team will develop an on-line survey which can be distributed as linked content for the City’s social media channels as well as inclusion in other City communicatfons. The focus of this survey will be to explore community awareness of climate change issues, collect input on concerns, interests, and ideas for addressing sustainability goals. Following the development of a draft plan, a second surv ey webpage will be developed to provide all community members the opportunity to provide detailed plan feedback. paleBLUEdot will develop a Survey Summary Report following each survey, including a summary of survey “themes” or findings and a summary of responses to all survey questfons. Public Informatfon Campaign: The paleBLUEdot team will support an on-going public communicatfon campaign through the development of a Social Media kit. The kit will be provided to City communicatfons staff and Climate Actfon Plan Team members for use in promotfng the planning process and engagement opportunitfes to the public. The Social Media kit may include informatfon for the City website, content for newsletters and email communicatfons, and example posts for social media accounts. In additfon, paleBLUEdot will develop fly ers, posters, or brochures appropriate to support community outreach meetfngs. Infographics paleBLUEdot will develop a series of infographics which summarize the findings of the GHG Analysis, Climate Risk and Vulnerab ility Assessment, and additfonal baseline documentatfon. The intent of the infographics will be to support communicatfon of data t o the public through the workshop sessions, focus group discussions, social media, and public website. The infographics will a lso be used in the engagement of the CAP Project Team. Community Project Webpage: paleBLUEdot will create and host a public project webpage to support ready access to project informatfon, documents, and surveys. The webpage will be actfve coinciding with the release of the initfal public input surv ey and maintained through project completfon. The project webpage, hosted on www.paleBLUEdot.llc will also provide access to the fu ll Draft Climate Actfon Plan when available and provide a venue for public review and commentfng on the draft plan. Community Engagement Meetfngs: These meetfngs are designed to provide an inclusive, responsive, diverse, feasible strategic engagement process to provide access by all key stakeholders across sectors, geographies, cultures, and interests. paleBLUEd ot will facilitate up to two in-person community engagement meetfngs during the development of the plan and up to two following the issue of the Draft Plan. One meetfng in each phase may be a hybrid in-person / online meetfng recorded and made available online for flexible partfcipatfon by community members. Example Survey Summary Report 21 Task Timeline* Chronology of Documents / Presentatfons City Proposal Review, Scope and Agreement Finalizatfon Aug-24 Project Kick-off Sep-24 Existfng Conditfons Documentatfon and Assessment Sept 2024 - Oct 2024 Community Engagement (survey, outreach, community meetfngs) Sept 2024 - Nov 2024 Planning Team Engagement Oct 2024 - April 2025 Draft Climate Actfon Plan Development Feb - April 2025 Community Engagement (Draft Plan Review) April - May 2025 Final Climate Actfon Plan May / June 2025 Implementatfon Support Tools Development May - July 2025 As a highly integrated project effort between the paleBLUEdot team and the City of Falcon Heights, we recommend a project scheduling discussion at the project kick-off meetfng to finalize the project tfmeline. Our team will manage the project scope to assure that project tasks are completed within the mutually agreed upon project schedule. Below is our team ’s preliminary recommendatfon for the Climate Actfon Plan project schedule and a chronology of documents and presentatfons as described in detail in the Scope of Services sectfon of this proposal. This proposed schedule is based on our team ’s extensive Climate Actfon Planning experience and is designed to support authentfc community engagement and a quality final Climate Actfon Plan documen t. Proposed Project Timeline * Schedule will be finalized with City Staff and Climate Actfon Plan Team at project initfatfon. Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goals Recommendatfons Report • Vulnerability Assessment • GHG Inventory • Renewable Energy Potentfals Study • Renewable Energy Potentfals Study Baseline Summary and Prelim Recommendatfons Presentatfons: • City Council • Community Meetfngs Draft Climate Actfon Plan Draft Plan Presentatfons: • City Council • Community Meetfngs Document published Presentatfon Final Climate Actfon Plan Final Plan Presentatfons: • City Council Implementatfon Tools 22 23 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience The paleBLUEdot team has extensive consultfng experience relevant to the Falcon Heights Climate Actfon Plan project, including Sustainability and Climate Actfon Plans, Climate Vulnerability Assessments, Climate Adaptatfon Plans, Renewable Energy Actfon Plans, Sustainability Baseline Assessments, and Tree Canopy and Carbon Sequestratfon Plans. Our work spans 22 States and our project experience within the last six years alone includes: Work Samples For samples of paleBLUEdot team work, please scan the QR code, or go to: https://palebluedot.llc/ falconheights-examples City of Albert Lea Climate Actfon and Adaptatfon Plan Albert Lea, MN City of Bloomington Climate Actfon and Adaptatfon Plan Bloomington, IN City of Burnsville Sustainability Plan Burnsville, MN City of Dubuque Climate Actfon and Adaptatfon Plan Dubuque, IA City of Edina Climate Actfon Plan Edina, MN Town of Hartiord Climate Actfon Plan Hartiord, VT City of La Crosse Climate Actfon Plan La Crosse, WI City of New Brighton Climate Actfon Plan New Brighton, MN Village of Northbrook Climate Actfon Plan Northbrook, IL City of Omaha Climate Actfon Plan Omaha, NE Village of Peterborough Renewable Energy Plan Peterborough, NH Polk County Climate Actfon Plan Des Moines, IA Village of Skokie Sustainability Plan Skokie, IL City of Warren 100% Clean Energy Master Plan Warren, MN City of Waukee Sustainability Plan Waukee, IA (45+) GHG Inventories (partfal list) City of Ames Greenhouse Gas Inventory 2014, 2016, 2018 Ames, IA City of Chattanooga Greenhouse Gas Inventory 2008, 2013, 2018 Chattanooga, TN City of Richfield GHG Emissions Inventory and CAP Implementatfon Analysis (50+) Vulnerability Assessments (partfal list) City of Duluth Climate Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptatfon Framework Duluth, MN City of Faribault Climate Vulnerability Assessment Faribault, MN Kane County Climate Vulnerability Assessment Geneva, IL City of La Farge Community Risks and Resilience Review La Farge, WI Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Community Climate Vulnerability Assessment State of Nebraska Climate Risk Assessment and Adaptatfon Framework Plan Omaha, NE Climate, Sustainability, and Energy Clients Akeley, MN Maplewood, MN Albert Lea, MN Marion, AL Ames, IA Middlebury, VT Apple Valley Morris, MN Bloomington, IN Mountain Iron, MN Brainerd, MN New Brighton, MN Brooklyn Park, MN North Mankato, MN Burnsville, MN Northbrook, IL Chattanooga, TN Northfield, MN Chrisholm, MN Oakdale, MN Crookston, MN Omaha, NE Dallas, TX Omaha–Council Bluffs Dubuque, IA Oshkosh, WI Duluth, MN Peterborough NH Eagan, MN Ranier, MN Eau Claire, WI Richfield, MN Edina, MN Roseville, MN Elgin, IL Saint Charles, MN Elk River, MN Skokie, Il Fairfax, MN St Louis Park, MN Faribault, MN Tuskegee, AL Fitchburg, WI Warren, MN Glen Ellyn Waukee, IA Granite Falls, MN West Des Moines, IA Hartiord, VT Winnebago, MN Kelliher, MN Winthrop, MN La Crosse, WI Wise, VA LaFarge, WI Woodbury, MN Municipal Clients Addison County, VT Grant County, MN Hennepin County, MN Otter Tail County, MN Kane County, Il Polk County, IA Ramsey County, MN Pope County, MN Becker County, MN Stevens County, MN Clay County, MN Traverse County, MN Douglas County, MN Wilkin County, MN County Clients State of Minnesota State of Missouri State of Montana State of Nebraska State Clients Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community White Earth Natfon Tribal Clients 24 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience City of La Crosse, WI - Beginning in 2021, paleBLUEdot worked with the City of La Crosse to develop its first Climate Actfon Plan. The plan builds on the City’s 2009 Sustainability Plan, reviewing the success of the actfons completed through that plan implementatfon and expanding the scope of implementatfon to include new focus areas, technologies, and educatfonal strategies. The development of the plan is rooted in significant community-specific research including Greenhouse Gas Inventories, Climate Vulnerability Assessment, Community- Wide Ground Cover and Carbon Sequestratfon Study, Renewable Energy Potentfal Assessment, and a broad Sustainability Baseline Assessment. The effort includes extensive community engagement with a partfcular focus on reaching underrepresented and vulnerable populatfons, creatfng a highly equitable engagement process. The team is also implementfng a Youth Engagement effort to facilitate equitable engagement of youth in the development of the plan. Reference Contact Kuhlman, Lewis Environmental Planner, City of La Crosse Phone: 608-789-7361 Email: kuhlmanl@cityoflacrosse.org Timeframe of Plan Research September 2021 - February 2022 Timeframe of Plan Development March 2022 - December 2022 City of Omaha, NE - The Cit of Omaha selected paleBLUEdot to develop its first Climate Actfon and Resilience Plan (CARP). The planning began in 2023 and is scheduled for completfon in 2024. The final plan will outline a pathway for the city to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 with interim goals established for 2030 and 2040. The planning effort included extensive baseline conditfon research and documentatfon including GHG inventories, climate vulnerability assessment, and a heat island and carbon sequestratfon study. The planning is being coordinated with the Omaha-Council Bluffs Comprehensive Climate Actfon Plan for which the CARP’s baseline research and goal recommendatfons established the foundatfon. The planning effort was paid for through the US EPA’s Climate Pollutfon Reductfon Grant. Reference Contact Marco Floreani Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic Development and Development Services Phone: 402 444-5035 Email: marco.floreani@cityofomaha.org Timeframe of Plan Research March 2023 - November 2023 Timeframe of Plan Development November 2023 - December 2024 (scheduled) Village of Skokie, IL - paleBLUEdot was selected by the Village of Skokie to develop the 2022 update to the Village’s Environmental Sustainability Plan. The plan includes both municipal organizatfonal operatfons as community-wide scope. The planning effort included the development of GHG inventories, operatfonal and community vulnerability assessments, community-wide renewable energy potentfal assessment, community-wide ground cover, carbon sequestratfon, and heat island study, and broad sustainability baseline assessment of the community. The planning effort included was designed around an in-depth collaboratfve planning process with Village staff and community stakeholders. Reference Contact Elizabeth Zimmerman Assistant to the Public Works Director Phone: 847 933-8427 Email: Elizabeth.Zimmerman@skokie.org Timeframe of Plan Research March 2022 - May 2022 Timeframe of Plan Development May 2022 - November 2022 25 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience City of New Brighton, MN - In 2022 and 2023, paleBLUEdot worked with the City of New Brighton to develop the City’s first Climate Adaptatfon Plan. The plan was developed in conjunctfon with the City’s Energy Actfon Plan supported by Xcel Energy. The final plan support’s the City’s goals of achieving municipal operatfons and community-wide GHG emission reductfons and increase community resilience to climate change. The planning effort included the development of GHG inventories, operatfonal and community vulnerability assessments, community-wide renewable energy potentfal assessment, community-wide ground cover, carbon sequestratfon, and heat island study, and broad sustainability baseline assessment of the community. The planning effort included was designed around an in-depth collaboratfve planning process with city staff and community stakeholders. Reference Contact Craig Schlichtfng Director of Community Assets and Development Phone: 612-638-2056 Email: craig.schlichtfng@newbrightonmn.gov Timeframe of Plan Research July 2022 - December 2022 Timeframe of Plan Development January 2023 - October 2023 City of Edina, MN - paleBLUEdot completed a climate and sustainability plan for the City of Edina. The plan includes both municipal organizatfonal operatfons as community-wide scope. The planning effort included the development of GHG inventories, renewable energy potentfals study, ground cover tree canopy and carbon sequestratfon assessment, and broad sustainability baseline assessments. The planning effort included robust community engagement as well as an in-depth collaboratfve planning process with City staff and community stakeholders. The plan meets the Global Covenant of Mayor’s requirements. Reference Contact Grace Hancock Sustainability Coordinator, City of Edina Phone: 952-826-1621 Email: GHancock@edinamn.gov Timeframe of Plan Research February 2021 - April 2021 Timeframe of Plan Development May 2021 - January 2022 Minnesota Region 4 - paleBLUEdot was engaged by West Central Initfatfve to develop a climate actfon plan guiding initfatfves throughout the seven county West Central Minnesota Region. The plan establishes a pathway for the region to reduce GHG emissions 40% by 2030 and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The final plan includes a quick-start guide of top recommended initfatfves as well as a menu of actfons for county and municipal governments to select from in crafting coordinated, localized implementatfon plans. The planning effort included extensive baseline research and foundatfonal documentatfon. Reference Contact Mark Kaelke Assistant Community Planner, West Central Initfatfve Phone: 218-998-1633 Email: mark@wcif.org Timeframe of Plan Research May 2022 - November 2022 Timeframe of Plan Development December 2022 - July 2023 26 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience Other Recent Plans (partfal list) Maplewood, MM (populatfon: 41,000) - paleBLUEdot has executed multfple projects supportfng the City of Maplewood’s sustainability and climate actfon efforts since 2016. Engagements for the City include: Climate Adaptatfon Plan; Climate Vulnerability Assessment; GHG Inventory Baseline and Annual Update (2016 - present); GHG Reductfon Actfon Recommendatfons. In 2020 paleBLUEdot worked with the City of Maplewood to develop the City’s first Climate Adaptatfon Plan. The plan addresses climate adaptatfon and sustainability goals in eight sectors including: Climate Health and Safety, Extreme Heat and Weather, Air Quality, Water Quality and Flooding, Greenspace and Ecosystem Health, Local Food and Agriculture, Climate Economy, and Adaptatfon Capacity City of Albert Lea, MN (populatfon 18,000) - paleBLUEdot has executed multfple projects supportfng the City of Albert Lea’s sustainability and climate actfon efforts since 2016. Engagements for the City include: Climate Vulnerability Assessment; GHG Inventory Baseline; and a community wide Renewable Energy Potentfals Study and Master Plan. In 2020 paleBLUEdot worked with the City of Albert Lea to develop the City’s first Climate Actfon Plan. The plan addresses climate mitfgatfon, adaptatfon and sustainability goals in eight sectors including: Buildings and Energy, Transportatfon, Waste Management, Water and Wastewater, Local Food and Agriculture, Greenspace and Trees, Climate Health and Safety, and Climate Economy. Town of Hartiord, VT (populatfon 10,000) -paleBLUEdot completed a Climate Actfon Plan for the Town of Hartiord. The plan includes both municipal organizatfonal operatfons as community-wide scope. The planning effort included the development of municipal operatfon and community-wide vulnerability assessments, GHG inventories, and broad sustainability baseline assessment of the community. The planning effort included was designed around an in-depth collaboratfve planning process with City staff and community stakeholders. The plan meets the Global Covenant of Mayor’s requirements. City of Dubuque, Iowa (populatfon: 58,000) The project, executed in 2019 and 2020, developed a comprehensive community wide and municipal operatfons mitfgatfon and adaptatfon plan. The effort included extensive community engagement with a partfcular focus on reaching underrepresented and vulnerable populatfons, creatfng a highly equitable engagement process. The team also designed and implemented a Youth Engagement effort to facilitate equitable engagement of youth in the development of the plan, as well as in designing processes to empower youth to remain engaged and actfve in the climate actfon effort through the implementatfon phase. City of Bloomington, Indiana (populatfon: 80,000) In 2020 and 2021, paleBLUEdot worked with the City of Bloomington to develop the City ’s first Climate Actfon Plan. The plan support’s the City’s goals of achieving municipal operatfons and community-wide GHG emission reductfons by 2030. The City also engaged paleBLUEdot to assist with establishing and organizing the City’s CAP Implementatfon team and the creatfon of implementatfon and monitoring tools for use in integratfng Climate Actfon within City operatfons. 27 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience Recent Greenhouse Gas Inventories (partfal list) City of Maplewood, MN - paleBLUEdot completed a Baseline Community-wide GHG Inventory and City Operatfons GHG Assessment for the City in 2016. paleBLUEdot has since provided annual updates for community-wide and City operatfons for the City of Maplewood for years 2016 through the present. The work included the development of reductfon recommendatfons which were incorporated the City’s Comprehensive Plan. The inventories will also serve as the basis for the City’s pending Climate Actfon Plan. City of Ames, IA - paleBLUEdot, teamed with Orange Environmental, developed Community-wide and Municipal Operatfons GHG Inventories for the City of Ames. The GHG inventory includes annual assessments for years 2014, 2016, and 2018. The inventory was completed in conjunctfon with the City’s Climate Vulnerability Assessment for which paleBLUEdot was retained. The inventory includes a long-range Business-as-usual emissions forecast as well as emissions comparison to a wide range of regional peer communitfes. The inventories were developed in accordance to the GHG Protocol for Citfes and Global Covenant of Mayor’s requirements. Village of Northbrook, IL - paleBLUEdot completed a Community-wide GHG Inventory and City Operatfons GHG Assessment. The GHG inventory includes annual assessments for years 2010, 2014, and 2018. The inventory was completed in conjunctfon with the City ’s Climate Actfon Plan for which paleBLUEdot was retained. Following the completfon of the Village’s Climate Actfon Plan, paleBLUEdot has provided annual GHG inventory updates for every year since 2020. Town of Hartiord, VT -paleBLUEdot completed a Community-wide GHG Inventory and Town Operatfons GHG Assessment for the Town of Hartiord Vermont. The GHG inventory includes annual assessments for years 2010, 2014, and 2018. The inventory was completed in conjunctfon with the City’s Climate Actfon Plan for which paleBLUEdot has been retained. The inventory includes a long-range Business-as-usual emissions forecast as well as emissions comparison to a wide range of regional peer communitfes. The inventories were developed in accordance to the GHG Protocol for Citfes and Global Covenant of Mayor’s requirements.. City of Chattanooga, TN - paleBLUEdot was selected to develop a community -wide GHG inventory for the City of Chattanooga. The GHG inventory includes annual assessments for years 2013, 2016, and 2019. The inventory was completed in conjunctfon with the City’s Climate Actfon Plan for which paleBLUEdot has been retained. The inventory includes a long -range Business-as-usual emissions forecast as well as emissions comparison to a wide range of regional peer communitfes. The inventories were developed in accordance to the GHG Protocol for Citfes and Global Covenant of Mayor’s requirements. Polk County Conservatfon, IA - paleBLUEdot developed a baseline GHG inventory for Polk County Conservatfon (PCC) government operatfons for the years 2013, 2017, and 2021. The inventories were completed in conjunctfon with the development of PCC’s Sustainability Plan which paleBLUEdot completed in 2023. 28 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience Recent Renewable Energy Potentfal Studies (partfal list) Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Solar Master Plan - This assessment establishes a Solar Energy Master Plan for all primary Tribal facilitfes (70 sites). This Master Plan effort will, for all subject tribal government facilitfes: 1) collect annual energy use data, calculate EUI and performance evaluatfon against ENERGY STAR/ B3 peers 2) evaluate the viability of solar pv 3) develop a detailed solar pv concept design, calculate annual energy generatfon possible, and develop preliminary project budgets 4) develop a Solar PV Master Plan report summarizing all findings, identffying Tribal economic development potentfal of solar pv development, and propose a solar implementatfon plan for Tribally owned facilitfes. Re-Energize Maplewood!, City of Maplewood - this community solar master plan is the first step towards Maplewood’s Comprehensive Plan renewable energy goals and builds on the City ’s Energize Maplewood! energy actfon plan. This assessment includes: • Providing solar feasibility, benefits, and funding informatfon follow-up to homes and businesses who previously partfcipated (100 homes, 20 businesses) • Review of city facilitfes energy use history and energy actfon plan recommendatfons in support of achieving Net Zero. • Physical site review for renewable energy characteristfcs, solar obstructfon study, and physical plant overview. • Development of concept renewable energy plan for all facilitfes and development of long - range renewable energy transitfon plan • Expanding the program for residents through outreach and renewable energy concept development for low-income manufactured home communitfes (3 community sites) • Assessing the solar pv feasibility community wide and Identffying the top 40 solar sites in the City, development of site-specific solar feasibility, benefits, and funding informatfon. Ramsey County Parks and Recreatfon Net Zero Master Plan – review of county facilitfes energy use history and energy actfon plan recommendatfons in support of achieving Net Zero. Physical site review for renewable energy characteristfcs, solar obstructfon study, and physical plant overview. Development of concept renewable energy plan for all facilitfes. Site assessments included rooftop, ground mount, and parking/carport feasibility assessment for 31 sites with installatfon capacitfes from 25 KW to 1.1 GW and over 147 million KWH in annual generatfon. Master Plan report including month-by-month energy generatfon potentfal, 20 year annual energy generatfon projectfon, comparison against site annual electric use, and development of long -range renewable energy transitfon plan including project definitfons, budgets, financing optfons, economic payback projectfons, environmental payback projectfons, and prioritfzed scheduling. Solar Ready Albert Lea; Solar Master Plan, City of Albert Lea - This study supports the City of Albert Lea in determining the feasibility of solar energy for all primary government facilitfes located within the City (15 sites). This plan, for all subject City/County/School district facilitfes: 1) collected annual energy use data, calculated EUI and performance evaluatfon against ENERGY STAR/ B3 peers 2) evaluated the viability of solar pv (rooftop, ground mount, parking/carport) 3) developed a detailed solar pv concept design, calculate annual energy generatfon possible, and develop preliminary project budgets 4) developed a project report summarizing all findings, identffying local economic development potentfal of solar pv development, and include a proposed solar implementatfon plan for City owned facilitfes. County Operatfons Solar Master Plan, Polk County - review of county facilitfes energy use history and energy actfon plan recommendatfons in support of achieving Net Zero. Physical site review for renewable energy characteristfcs, solar obstructfon study, and physical plant overview. Development of concept renewable energy plan for all facilitfes. Site assessments included rooftop, ground mount, and parking/carport feasibility assessment for 31 sites with installatfon capacitfes from 10 KW to 2.1 MW and over 12 million KWH in annual generatfon. 29 Qualificatfons - Firm Experience Recent Climate Vulnerability Assessments (partfal list) City of Dubuque, IA - paleBLUEdot completed a Climate Vulnerability Assessment for the City of Dubuque. A broad range of climate impacts and risks were identffied and assessed for the community. Vulnerable populatfons were identffied, quantffied, and mapped. Climate risks were then quantffied against the community specific characteristfcs, demographics, and geographic distributfon. Climate risks were then organized and prioritfzed based on the specific vulnerabilitfes of the community. The Climate Vulnerability Assessment was completed in conjunctfon with the City ’s Climate Actfon Plan for which paleBLUEdot has been retained. City of Bloomington, IN - paleBLUEdot completed a community Climate Vulnerability and Risk Assessment for the City of Bloomington. The assessment established current and future climate projectfons and impacts and identffied community vulnerabilitfes to antfcipated climate change impacts. The assessment mapped vulnerable populatfons city-wide and established a wide range of climate vulnerability metrics. Community-wide climate hazards and risks were then catalogued and prioritfzed based on Climate Risk and Adaptatfon Framework and Taxonomy (CRAFT) methodologies and the requirements of the Global Covenant of Mayors. The Climate Vulnerability Assessment was completed in conjunctfon with the City’s Climate Actfon Plan for which paleBLUEdot has been retained. Village of Northbrook, IL - paleBLUEdot completed a community Climate Vulnerability and Risk Assessment for the Village of Northbrook. A broad range of climate impacts and risks were identffied and assessed for the community. Vulnerable populatfons were identffied, quantffied, and mapped. Climate risks were then quantffied against the community specific characteristfcs, demographics, and geographic distributfon. Community -wide climate hazards and risks were then catalogued and prioritfzed based on Climate Risk and Adaptatfon Framework and Taxonomy (CRAFT) methodologies and the requirements of the Global Covenant of Mayors. The Climate Vulnerability Assessment was completed in conjunctfon with the City’s Climate Actfon Plan for which paleBLUEdot has been retained. Vulnerability Assessment, Sustainability, Climate, and Energy Plan Experience in Minnesota The map to the right illustrates paleBLUEdot’s work with communitfes throughout Minnesota 30 Qualificatfons - Resumes Ted has over 27 years of experience leading planning efforts for local governments. Ted also has experience facilitatfng public engagement and input processes, both as a professional consultant as well as through his many years as a community volunteer leader. He has an expertfse in delivering community sustainability, vulnerability and adaptatfon, Greenhouse Gas, energy, and water consumptfon Inventories and Reductfon Actfon Plans. His recent experience includes over 60 community climate assessments and planning efforts and 13 non- governmental organizatfons. Ted is also a natfonal solar pv technical expert for the US Department of Energy. His work with the DOE includes technical assistance for community driven solar projects natfonally as well as serving as a natfonal solar technology trainer for architects and engineers. Relevant Experience (50+) Community and NGO Climate Vulnerability, GHG Inventory, Adaptatfon and Actfon Plans (partfal list): City of Maplewood Community Sustainability Planning including: Climate Vulnerabilitfes Assessment; Climate Adaptatfon and Actfon Plan; City-Wide Sustainable Energy potentfals study and target goal setting; Community-Wide Tree Inventory and Sequestratfon Potentfals Study; Greenhouse Gas Inventory & Reductfon Plan Maplewood, MN City of Eau Claire City-Wide Net Zero Guide; GHG Calculator/Scenario Planning Tools: Land Use and Land Development Impact Travel and Transportatfon Impact Building and Infrastructure Impact Eau Claire, WI Town of Hartiord Climate Vulnerabilitfes Assessment; Renewable Energy Potentfals Study; Climate Actfon Plan Hartiord, VT City of Albert Lea Climate Vulnerabilitfes Assessment; Climate Adaptatfon Actfon Plan; City Wide Renewable Energy Planning Albert Lea, MN Addison County County-Wide Climate Actfon Plan Middlebury, VT City of Dubuque Climate Vulnerable Populatfon Assessment; Climate Actfon Plan Dubuque, IA City of Bloomington Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment; Climate Actfon Plan Bloomington, IN Village of Northbrook Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment; Climate Actfon Plan Northbrook, IL City of Burnsville Climate Vulnerable Populatfon Assessment; Climate Adaptatfon Plan; Sustainability Plan Burnsville, MN City of Edina Climate Vulnerable Populatfon Assessment; GHG Inventory; Climate Actfon and Adaptatfon Plan (in progress) Edina. MN City of Omaha Climate Actfon and Resilience Plan Omaha, NE City of Chattanooga Community Greenhouse Gas Inventory, Forecastfng, and Climate Mitfgatfon Recommendatfons Report Chattanooga, TN State of Minnesota, MPCA Climate Adaptatfon Goals and Menu of Strategies for Minnesota Communitfes St Paul, MN Community Leadership (partfal) City of Maplewood Environment and Natural Resource Commissioner Climate Reality Project, Leadership Corps Member Educatfon Bachelor of Architecture, with Honors, University of Detroit Recent Speaking and Training Engagements University of Michigan, Great Lakes Adaptatfon Forum 2018: “Beyond Borders: Low-Cost Opportunities for Engaging Limited-Resourced Communities in Climate Action Planning” Michigan State University: “Climate Vulnerability and Climate Action Opportunities for the City of Lansing” 4th Annual Natfonal Adaptatfon Forum, Madison, WI: “Minnesota Adaptation Toolkit –case study review of a scalable project approach for rapid vulnerability assessments” 2019 Annual Missouri SEMA conference, St Louis, MO: “ Climate Vulnerability And Adaptation Approaches for Missouri Emergency Managers” 2019 ASES Conference, Minneapolis, MN: “Maximizing Value of Climate Actions Forum” City of New Berlin, WI “Potential for Renewable Energy in New Berlin” Project Role: Lead / Project Manager Ted will be the project team lead, responsible for final paleBLUEdot deliverables. Locatfon: Minnesota Ted Redmond Principal Registratfons and Affiliatfons (partfal) Registered Architect, State of Minnesota Climate Actfon Reserve Climate Adaptatfon Knowledge Exchange American Society of Adaptatfon Professionals US EPA ENERGY STAR Partner 31 Qualificatfons - Resumes Colleen has twenty-six years of educatfonal experience including nine years expertfse in curriculum development and implementatfon of gifted educatfon. Colleen is accomplished in designing and executfng youth educatfonal programming in the classroom and across a variety of age groups. In additfon, Colleen has coordinated and partfcipated in multfple design thinking initfatfves both in the classroom and with district staff members. Relevant Experience Youth Engagement, Public Educatfon Communicatfon support on (30+) Sustainability, Community GHG Inventory, Climate Vulnerability, Adaptatfon and Actfon Plans (partfal list): City of Dubuque Youth Climate Actfon Design Thinking Engagement Dubuque, IA Avenues for Homeless Youth Youth Design Thinking Engagement Minneapolis, MN City of Edina Youth Climate Actfon Design Thinking Engagement Edina, MN City of Bloomington Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment; Climate Actfon Plan Bloomington, IN Town of Hartiord Hartiord, VT City of La Crosse Youth Climate Actfon Design Thinking Engagement La Crosse, WI City of Maplewood Maplewood, MN City of Duluth Duluth, MN City of Albert Lea Albert Lea, MN City of Faribault Faribault, MN City of Brainerd Brainerd, MN City of Brooklyn Park Brooklyn Park, MN City of Crookston Crookston, MN City of St Louis Park St Louis Park, MN Village of Northbrook Climate Risk and Vulnerability Assessment; Climate Actfon Plan Northbrook, IL City of Omaha Omaha, NE City of Burnsville Burnsville, MN City of Granite Falls Granite Falls, MN City of Morris Morris, MN City of Faribault Faribault, MN Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Cass Lake, MN City of Mountain Iron Mountain Iron, MN Additfonal Experience Curriculum Development and Implementatfon - Gateway Program ISD 833 Programming Specialist - District 833 Gifted Educatfon Department Design Thinking Team, ISD 833 Design Thinking Process Coach/Facilitator - ISD 833 Summer Design Challenge Community Climate Awareness Program Development and Implementatfon MPCA State Fair Sustainability Stage City of Maplewood Energize Maplewood Community Engagement Youth Engagement, Avenues for Homeless Youth, City of Minneapolis Climate Committee Bailey Elementary School Community Engagement Gifted Educatfon ISD 833 Lead Teacher ISD 833 Gifted and Talented Leadership Team ISD 833 Gateway Educatfon, Affiliatfons, and Honors Master of Educatfon - Educatfonal Leadership Gifted Educatfon Certfficate - St. Thomas University Minnesota Educatfon Associatfon Minnesota Educators of the Gifted and Talented Natfonal Associatfon for Gifted Children 2015 Nominee Minnesota Teacher of the Year 2016 Nominee Presidentfal Award for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching Project Role: Engagement and Educatfon Colleen will support the design and implementatfon of the community engagement effort, and the final communicatfons and educatfonal content to be used in the climate actfon plan. Locatfon: Minnesota Colleen Redmond Principal 32 Qualificatfons - Resumes Sophia is a recent college graduate committed to regeneratfve environmental justfce that centers communitfes on the frontlines of the climate crisis. She is excited by work that is rooted in reciprocal relatfonships with the natural world, and driven by values of access to clean water, air, and greenspace as basic rights. She is partfcularly interested in the design and lived experience of urban spaces, which exist at the intersectfon of countless social issues, interests, and opportunitfes for innovatfon in climate resilience. She has supported environmental and social justfce organizatfons in a variety of roles, always with an eye towards practfcality, narratfve, and optfmism as essentfal tools in imagining better systems. Sophia’s recent experience with paleBLUEdot includes tree canopy and ground cover research as well as generatfng vulnerability and baseline maps for climate actfon plans for Kane County IL, West Des Moines IA, and Omaha NE. Educatfon Wellesley College, BA in Peace and Justfce Studies and Global Portuguese Studies (Cum Laude graduate of Class of 2022) Sophia Pechaty Project Role: Research Specialist Sophia supports the paleBLUEdot team with team facilitatfon and research assistance underpinning the development of plan strategies and city-wide existfng conditfons research. Locatfon: New York Ben is a recent college graduate in Psychology and double minor in Cognitfve Science and Philosophy. Ben has been a research assistant supportfng the paleBLUEdot team since 2018. Ben’s experience also includes being a staff advisor for the College of Educatfon and Human Service Professions and the UMD providing advisory services on General/Cognitfve psychology and statfstfcs. Ben’s recent experience with paleBLUEdot includes strategy research support as well as tree canopy and ground cover data research for the City of Burnsville Sustainability Plan, Village of Northbrook Climate Actfon Plan, the City of Edina Climate Actfon Plan, Minnesota Region 4 Climate Actfon Plan, City of Falcon Heights Climate Actfon Plan, and the Kane County Climate Actfon Plan. Educatfon University of Minnesota Duluth, B.A.Sc (2022) Ben Heck Project Role: Research Specialist Ben supports the paleBLUEdot team with research assistance underpinning the development of plan strategies. Locatfon: Minnesota 33 Fee Proposal As noted in our Cover Letter, paleBLUEdot exists as a mission-driven organizatfon solely to advance sustainability and climate actfon. As a result, you will find us a flexible, responsive, collaboratfve team providing high quality service energetfcall y delivered and within a flexible fee structure. The paleBLUEdot team proposes a lump sum fee for services. Fees will be billed monthly for the team’s tfme spent towards progress on each item. The proposed lump sum fee for each service, including antfcipated reimbursable expenses, are as follows: *Fee Proposal Assumptfons and Consideratfons: Engagement and management costs include the following meetfng and presentatfon assumptfons: up to 6 planning team meetfngs (up to 2 in- person and 4 video conference), up to 3 commission meetfngs (2 in-person and 1 video conference), up to 3 city council meetfngs (2 in-person and 1 video conference), up to 4 community presentatfon/input meetfngs (in person), and approximately monthly management/coordinatfon phone calls or video conference meetfngs with city staff as needed (up to a total of 9). paleBLUEdot understands that the City will provide meetfng spaces for all staff, plan team, community meetfngs, and other project meetfngs and does not include expenses associa ted with securing meetfng space. Fees include all budgeted expenses including travel required for proposed in -person meetfngs and presentatfons, incidental printfng and supplies for planning team meetfngs, and community workshops. All final deliverables are antfcipated to be electronic documents, minimizing the environmental impact of paper use, and reimbursable expenses. Printed copies may be requested as an additfonal reimbursable expense. Document review period for the draft plan includes a single round of review and edits. paleBLUEdot antfcipates receiving a single consolidated review document from the city which provides a unified, consensus directfon on draft plan refinement desired for plan finalizatfon. A detailed review and revision of all foundatfonal and process documents including the Climate Actfon Plan Baseline Assessment and Strategic Goal Recommendatfons document, planning team agendas, and planning team process webpage is not included in paleBLUEdot ’s project schedule or fee. Additfonal reviews may be provided as an additfonal reimbursable expense and may require schedule adjustments. paleBLUEdot’s proposal assumes tfmely and clear directfon, informatfon, and decisions will be received relatfve to data requests or mutually agreed upon document reviews as necessary for the paleBLUEdot team to perform the Scope of Services. Language translatfon of process documents, final documents, and community meetfngs is not included unless detailed in the pro ject approach but can be provided as an additfonal reimbursable expense and may require schedule adjustments. Fee proposal assumes City acceptance of paleBLUEdot standard insurance coverage. Additfonal insurance coverage is available as an additfonal cost. If requested, paleBLUEdot will issue Certfficate of Insurance statements notfng the City as “Certfficate Holder.” Naming the City as “Additfonal Insured” by endorsement may be available if desired as an additfonal cost. Fee proposal assumes invoice payments are received via check or direct bank payment. Payments by credit card may be accepted only with the additfon of a Credit Convenience Fee charge applied to each invoice equal to all applicable fees charged credit processor(s). Credit Convenience Fees shall be an additfonal service expense in additfon to paleBLUEdot costs outlined above. Basic Services Fee Project Kick-off $2,500 Research, Existfng Conditfons Documentatfon: $10,000 Vulnerability Assessment GHG Inventory and Forecastfng Renewable Energy Potentfals Study Ground Cover, Tree Canopy, and Carbon Sequestratfon Study Baseline Assessment and Strategy Recommendatfons Climate Actfon Plan Development and Finalizatfon $15,000 Community Engagement, Presentatfons, and Planning Team Facilitatfon $14,400 Project Management $6,000 Basic Services Total:* $47,900 Prepared by: 2515 White Bear Ave, A8 Suite 177 Maplewood, MN 55109 Contact: Ted Redmond tredmond@paleBLUEdot.llc