Aurora accepts $200,000 grant to study and support ‘stretch code’ adoption

Aurora city staff said the city will accept a $200,000 grant from the Illinois Finance Authority to support adoption and implementation of a so‑called stretch energy code that would raise local building energy-efficiency standards above the current Illinois State Energy Code.

City Director of Sustainability Lisonbee Lindberg told aldermen the grant covers roughly four years of work to build staff capacity, contract training, run public engagement and form a technical advisory committee to study impacts and recommend whether the city should adopt the stretch code.

"The grant award is $200,000 over about 4 years… and it's to support the adoption and implementation of stretch codes in the city of Aurora," Lindberg said. She described the stretch code as an alternative mandatory compliance path that is more efficient than the state's base energy code and noted the state requires periodic tightening of its efficiency standards.

Chief Development Services Officer John Curley said accepting the grant does not itself adopt the stretch code. "No. And and just to be clear, we're not adopting stretch codes. All we're doing is voting yes or no if we want to accept a $200,000 grant," he said. Lindberg and Curley told the committee the grant would fund staff time in Development Services, sustainability and IT, plus subcontracted training and public outreach.

Aldermen pressed staff on timing, committee membership and whether the city would recommend adoption. Lindberg said she expects to convene a technical advisory committee in roughly three to four months, allow public forums and recommend a six‑month ramp between adoption and enforcement if the city moves forward. "I would recommend that we have at least a 6 month ramp up between actual adoption and implementation/enforcement," she said.

Several aldermen urged broad outreach, including to trade unions and builders, and cautioned that the advisory committee should not be perceived as having a predetermined outcome. "All options are on the table, including maybe voluntary participation," Alderman Mesiakos said during committee discussion.

The finance committee and council added the resolution accepting the grant (agenda item 20‑5‑824) to the consent agenda. No formal roll‑call vote on the resolution took place in the committee discussion; the item advanced as a consent agenda item for the next council meeting.

Why it matters: adopting a stretch code would put Aurora ahead of state minimums and could affect construction costs, contractor training and future building permits. Staff said the grant is intended to pay for the technical work, public outreach and initial implementation planning so the council can make an informed decision.

What’s next: staff will recruit a technical advisory committee, hold public meetings, produce cost‑impact assessments and return recommendations to council. The council has final authority on any code adoption.