Cleveland Launches C-PACE Program!

CLEVELAND, OH – May 5, 2015 – Sustainable Real Estate Solutions, Inc. (SRS)—a leading provider of services and tools to assist contractors, project developers, and energy service companies qualify, develop and underwrite projects for energy efficiency financing—has been retained by the Council of Smaller Enterprises (COSE), to conduct a workshop for Cleveland area contractors entitled: How C-PACE Financing Can Grow Your Business.

The free forum is scheduled on Friday, May 15, from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the COSE offices: 1240 Huron Rd E, Cleveland, OH 44115. Registration is currently open for the session.

Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) is an innovative program that is helping commercial and industrial property owner’s access affordable, long-term, 100% financing for smart energy upgrades to their buildings. Typical projects require no out-of-pocket expense and generate immediate cash flow for building owners—enabling deeper, more capital intensive retrofit investments.

The forum, led by Brian J. McCarter, CEO of SRS, third-party consultant for industry-leading CPACE programs nationwide, is designed to show how commercial and industrial real estate project developers, energy service companies and contractors can grow their business using innovative C-PACE financing. The session will outline other successful programs and showcase the standards, tools and underwriting best practices proven to win projects and meet stakeholder underwriting demands.

“The support SRS provides for C-PACE programs around the country has led to a streamlined, standardized, technically-sound and transparent underwriting methodology,” said McCarter. “The process, designed in collaboration with program administrators, has earned the confidence of building owners, existing mortgage holders and capital providers.”

In just two years, C-PACE programs nationwide have approved financing for more than 120 projects valued at more than $100 million, with an accelerating pipeline of new projects.

“This project underwriting methodology has facilitated 65 percent of all C-PACE finance approvals nationwide and is now poised to enable the large-scale adoption of energy efficiency investment in Ohio,” said McCarter.

“Our work with small business owners has found that beyond awareness of the opportunities, access to capital for investment in the implementation of energy-efficiency projects is a limitation for many small businesses. Most small businesses do not have the cash on hand to purchase or install new energy efficient improvements. As a result of the opportunity that exists, COSE has been working to create new vehicles for lending and access to capital for small businesses that want to pursue the opportunities that energy efficiency will yield for their business.PACE is one such way,” said Nicole Stika, Senior Director of Energy Services for COSE.

“SRS’s state-of-the-art project development tools have brought speed and transparency to the commercial PACE underwriting process. A recognized industry leader, SRS has enabled a CPACE industry best practice across the entire project life cycle—from project origination through financing. We are delighted to partner with SRS to introduce Cleveland area contractors and commercial and industrial building owners to these proven tools to jumpstart project origination in the Cleveland,” added Ms. Stika.

To register, visit: Workshop Registration Page