Increasing Hydro costs are prompting the city to upgrade the lighting at the Maritime Heritage Centre.
The Maritime Heritage Society, on Dec. 20, asked the city to consider installing new energy efficient lighting in the heritage centre’s display gallery and Rotary Hall to control rising BC Hydro costs.
Council agreed to do so as soon as external funding sources could be secured.
City staff told council at its financial planning meeting Jan. 29 that the city could use grant money.
“Typically BC Hydro and the Community Works Fund are the only sources for available external funding for this type of project,” Jason Decksheimer, the city’s asset management supervisor, wrote in a report to council. “Unfortunately approximately half of the fixtures being considered for replacement are subject to regulatory phase-out (high wattage incandescent) and therefore BC Hydro offers only limited incentives to undertake an upgrade.”
Decksheimer said since BC Hydro could likely only provide $2,000 towards the lighting upgrades, the remainder of the $42,000 project could be funded under the Community Works Fund, which comes as a rebate from the Gas Tax. The fund has an ongoing budget of $100,000 for facility energy retrofits.
Council agreed to undertake the project with $40,000 funded from the Community Works Fund Reserve and available BC Hydro funding.