The Illinois Energy Conservation Authority NFP (IECA) has been selected by McHenry County as the program administrator for the McHenry County Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing program for commercial real estate owners. The passing of the C-PACE legislation by the McHenry County Board makes McHenry County the third county-wide C-PACE program in Illinois.
“The C-PACE program provides a convenient, cost-effective way for businesses to attain up to 100 percent financing for energy-efficient improvements that can be easily repaid through the property tax bill,” said Jim McConoughey, president of the McHenry County Economic Development Corporation. “We encourage McHenry County businesses to take advantage of these types of improvements because they benefit the environment and individual businesses, strengthening our local economy.”
Introduced in Illinois in 2019, C-PACE is an innovative financing tool that provides low-cost, long-term funding for energy efficiency, renewable energy and water conservation projects in commercial properties. C-PACE financing is currently available in 37 states, including the District of Columbia. From 2009 to 2018, C-PACE programs have funded 2,400 qualifying projects for more than $1.5 billion, while also creating over 17,900 jobs.
“We look forward to working with McHenry County and supporting the community’s economic development,” said Mark Pikus, president of the IECA. “This is a great program for McHenry County’s commercial real estate owners, and we intend to work with the local constituents to further educate businesses on the C-PACE program benefits.”
The IECA is uniquely positioned to assist the region in establishing successful C-PACE programs that will support greater economic development activity, as well as contribute to developing high performing buildings through installation of energy efficiency and clean energy technologies.