Distributed District Energy: A Potential Catalyst for Equitable Urban Decarbonization

LABBC, IBI Group, Arup and CenTrio Energy partnered with ULI-LA under the Urban Land Institute’s Net Zero Imperative to identify real-world strategies to develop a “distributed district energy system” in Downtown Los Angeles, beginning with a central plant in the heart of Bunker Hill.

LOS ANGELES, January 2023 — Enhancing and expanding a district energy plant in Bunker Hill could unlock a range of economic, environmental and social benefits with the potential for transformative impact, a report published recently by the Urban Land Institute’s Los Angeles District Council (ULI-LA) demonstrates.

This conclusion was reached by a multidisciplinary panel of local experts tasked with identifying real-world strategies to develop a “distributed district energy system” in Downtown Los Angeles, beginning with a central plant located in the heart of the Bunker Hill neighborhood. Co-hosted by ULI-LA and the Los Angeles Better Buildings Challenge (LABBC) with meaningful support and participation from IBI Group, Arup and CenTrio Energy, among others, the panel hit on major barriers and compelling opportunities, developed new insights and uncovered exciting synergies.

Specifically, the panel focused on:

• Identifying strategies to enhance and expand an existing district cooling plant to serve additional buildings.

• Identifying strategies to scale impact by connecting an existing plant to additional district plants in Downtown Los Angeles, creating a “distributed district energy system” that enhances efficiency and resilience for multiple diverse property types and the system as a whole.

• Identifying strategies to enable smaller, less well-resourced buildings to connect to the district system.

• Creating a replicable roadmap for other cities to leverage existing infrastructure toward city, regional and global decarbonization efforts.

The comprehensive 80-page report is the result of a two-day exploratory technical assistance panel process made possible by the ULI Net Zero Imperative (NZI). Funded with generous support from ULI member Owen Thomas, the Net Zero Imperative supports the work of local communities seeking concrete ideas and strategies for real estate owners, public sector leaders and the public to eliminate carbon emissions from the built environment and reach a state of zero net carbon emissions.

Los Angeles was selected as one of eight global cities to advance the energy performance of buildings through the Net Zero Imperative. Other cities included: Austin, Texas; Kansas City, Missouri; Minneapolis, Minnesota; San Jose, California; Shenzhen, China; Beijing, China; and Toronto, Canada. A multi-year cohort model will allow these cities the opportunity to collaborate and share best practices and collective resources.

The work conducted for this ULI Net Zero Imperative project marks the beginning of a long-term on-the-ground campaign.