Council committee approves guaranteed-savings plan to modernize five police district buildings

The Committee of the Whole on Wednesday approved an ordinance to proceed with a guaranteed‑savings performance contract with Leopardo Energy LLC to design and install energy and building upgrades at five Cleveland Police district facilities and to use a lease‑purchase financing structure to fund up to $21 million in work.

The plan calls for a design‑build approach and a guaranteed maximum price of $21 million for the scope identified in the energy conservation report. Leopardo and its team will install HVAC replacements, roof work, windows, a solar array at one site and related systems; the company will measure and verify savings and guarantee total savings over the life of the performance period. Director of Capital Projects said the lease‑purchase bid the administration intends to accept came in at roughly 4.1 percent and would close more quickly than a traditional general‑obligation bond sale.

The ordinance moves complex financing and procurement questions to the council floor; council members pressed the administration and Leopardo for details about how savings are measured, whether labor and local small‑business goals will be met, and the risks of a lease‑purchase (which uses the installed equipment as collateral). Leopardo officials said savings streams will come from utility reductions, lower maintenance costs and procurement efficiencies; firm representatives said they measure savings against a baseline in accordance with industry measurement‑and‑verification protocols and that they have not previously failed to meet a guarantee. Drake Waller, Leopardo’s senior vice president of engineering, described the measurement process as an annual, audited, year‑over‑year verification once the work is completed.

Director of Finance said the administration expects average annual debt service of about $1.5 million over 20 years (principal and interest), and that the lender would have recourse only to the improvements (HVAC, panels, etc.), not to the land or buildings. The administration also said the loan would not count against the city’s GO debt limit.

Council members repeatedly pressed for additional detail before final council action: specific amortization schedules, the procurement categories Leopardo will target, confirmation of Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) and MBE/FBE/CSP participation plans, and a clear schedule of what work will be done at each district. The ordinance as amended requires quarterly construction reports and a project labor agreement; Leopardo said preconstruction would start immediately with site work this fall and a 12‑month on‑site construction schedule once mobilized.

The committee approved the ordinance for consideration by the full council; the final financing agreement, MBE/CSP plans, the measurement‑and‑verification protocols and the lender selection remain for later council review and contract execution.