Have you heard of PACE before? PACE stands for Property Accessed Clean Energy and is a financing program for clean energy projects which include energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Currently in Ohio, only commercial PACE (C-PACE) is widely available; however, a couple of communities are piloting a residential program. The project costs are paid for through a special assessment on the property, meaning the repayment of the financed amount is voluntarily added to the annual property tax bill. This also means the C-PACE debt stays with the building, not the owner. Since tenants in commercial buildings pay their proportionate share of the building property taxes and energy costs, C-PACE can benefit both the building owner and the tenants.

The goal of the C-PACE program is to help property owners reduce their energy consumption and environmental impact with financing of new energy efficient systems and/or installation of on site solar and is available for for profit businesses, nonprofits, and local governments. Instead of paying for higher energy bills or constant repairs to older equipment, newer equipment is installed that costs less to operate and maintain. The lower energy costs offsets the C-PACE repayment.