Laserfiche WebLink
<br /> <br />3 <br />Executive Summary <br />About Rice Creek Commons <br />Rice Creek Commons is a 427-acre brownfield redevelopment in Arden Hills, Minnesota. The site was <br />formerly known as the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant (TCAAP). It will be a mixed-use development and <br />is divided into five neighborhoods. The development will include a variety of residential options, such as <br />multi-family residential, single-family residential, townhomes, and senior housing, as well as commercial, <br />retail, big-box retail, and light industrial spaces. At the time of this analysis, the planned buildout of the <br />development will occur over four years, with the conceptual phasing taking place between 2027 and 2030. <br />Project Partners <br />The Joint Development Authority (JDA) Board — which consists of two members from Arden Hills City <br />Council, two members from the Ramsey County Board of Commissioners, and one appointed resident from <br />Arden Hills — and City of Arden Hills and Ramsey County staff are working together to determine next steps <br />for the development of Rice Creek Commons. <br />This group of partners established the need for a report to assess the feasibility of implementing goals <br />within the JDA’s Green Energy Vision for Rice Creek Commons (RCC): carbon neutrality, clean energy, <br />climate resiliency, equity, and innovation. <br />Study Scope and Process <br />Ever-Green Energy, with support from LHB, conducted a comprehensive energy analysis, evaluated <br />greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction strategies, developed sustainability design guidelines, and selected a <br />suitable certification program. <br />By quantifying the potential GHG reductions, analyzing various clean energy scenarios, and encompassing a <br />community-wide approach, the report aims to identify effective strategies to achieve Rice Creek Common’s <br />sustainability goals. Additionally, it explores potential funding sources and opportunities to support the <br />implementation of these initiatives. <br />High-Performance Buildings <br />An analysis comparing the community’s energy use under a code baseline scenario versus a high- <br />performance building scenario demonstrated that high-performance buildings would result in a 62% <br />reduction in the community’s total building energy use. Since the high-performance buildings are all-electric, <br />they also have the potential to use carbon-free energy sources to a greater extent than the baseline <br />buildings. <br />Energy Modeling <br />Heating and cooling needs were analyzed for each of the five neighborhoods in the planned development. <br />Three all-electric scenarios were compared to a baseline scenario, which assumed buildings were <br />constructed to current building codes and utilized natural gas for heating. Two scenarios looked at options