City urged to raise energy-performance target
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The Brandon environment and climate change committee is hoping the city will lead by example in Manitoba by adopting a minimum Tier 2 energy-performance target for municipal buildings.
Coun. Kris Desjarlais (Ward 2) made the recommendation on behalf of the committee during Monday night’s regular council meeting, advocating for the city to introduce a higher energy-efficiency standard in new city-owned buildings, civic capital projects and municipal renovations.
“Brandon can lead by example through its own construction and renovation decisions, while also lending its voice as Manitoba’s second-largest urban centre to provincial conversations about code direction,” Desjarlais read from the committee’s letter to council.
Coun. Kris Desjarlais (Ward 2) said if the city is not prepared to commit its own municipal buildings to a higher energy-performance target, it will have a hard time convincing developers to do so. (Alex Lambert/The Brandon Sun files)
The provincial building code — adopted in January 2024 — lays the framework for five energy-efficiency tiers for small or residential buildings, which are municipally enforced.
Provincially, Tier 1 is the baseline for both small and large buildings, meaning large builds are required to reach a 20 per cent efficiency improvement over the pre-2024 requirements. Small buildings are only required to implement an “incremental improvement,” according to the Manitoba Energy Code for Buildings.
Desjarlais told council the committee wants the city to strive for the next energy target.
“Tier 2, up from the national baseline standard, is a 10 per cent improvement on energy and efficiency, so we’re not talking astronomical changes,” he said.
“If we’re not ready to start committing our own municipal buildings to that, then we’re going to have a hard time convincing the rest of the developers to do the same.”
He acknowledged housing affordability concerns within the city.
“Brandon has an opportunity to show practical leadership by aligning local infrastructure with practical decisions with long-term affordability,” he said, adding that provincial cost analysis on building codes shouldn’t default to detached single-family homes and should incorporate apartment-style and other residential buildings.
Mayor Jeff Fawcett was eager to support the recommendation.
“We could ask for comment in as short an order as possible,” he suggested at council.
“We put a little hustle on (administration),” Fawcett said in an interview after the meeting. “Part of it is because Coun. Desjarlais is a big champion of this.”
Council voted to circulate the recommendation for comment through administration by the next council meeting on Sept. 8.
Desjarlais, who is not seeking re-election in October, stressed the role that councillors and mayors will play in becoming a net-zero municipality.
» rgerrard@brandonsun.com