Government math: Las Vegas spends $185 million to save $400,000 a year in energy costs

Write on Nevada ^ | March 6, 2012 | Victor Joecks

[NevadaPolicyResearchInstitute]

I'm referring, of course, to the new Las Vegas City Hall.

City officials, led by Mayor Carolyn Goodman, have been putting out a ridiculous talking point, bragging that the new city hall will save Las Vegas $400,000 a year in energy costs.

"This is an incredible night for us all," the mayor [Carolyn Goodman] said.

She said the energy efficient building, which features 33 "solar trees" in the front that generate electricity, will reduce the energy costs by more than $400,000 a year.

The same talking point has also been in the RJ multiple times.*

Now, we at NPRI are all about saving money, but that's not what's happening here. What Mayor Goodman fails to brag about is that city hall mortgage payments are going to grow from $3.5 million in Fiscal Year 2013 to annual payments of $13.4 million in FY 2017. To compare, the old city hall was paid off.

So savings of $400,000 a year will bring the net mortgage payment down to ... $13 million a year.

[BitWielder1]

In Las Vegas, that would work. After all, the whole city is built on people who are bad at math.

I once saw a Las Vegas hotel room with a sign on the door to please turn off the lights when you go out, to conserve electricity.
That would save maybe 60W.
At the same time they were burning a million watts on the displays right outside.
Go figure. Oh, wait, they didn't.

[Venturer]

I believe Las Vegas is supplied electricity by the Hydro Electric Hoover dam anyway.

[bruinbirdman]

Forest City, Public Officials Celebrate Dedication of New Las Vegas City Hall

"Forest City's Real Estate Services subsidiary developed the City Hall for Las Vegas on a fee basis. The company owns three additional adjoining blocks of land which it intends to develop into a new civic district with a mix of uses including office, retail and services that support the City Hall and other nearby governmental buildings. Construction of the City Hall is part of a broader strategy by Las Vegas leaders to stimulate job creation and economic revitalization of the city's historic downtown."

yitbos

[BitWielder1]

I believe Las Vegas is supplied electricity by the Hydro Electric Hoover dam anyway.

So I've been told also. Las Vegas would not exist without it.

[lowbridge]

Bump

[donozark]

Oscar, Carolyn’s hubby has appeared on CSI on several occasions.

[roadcat]

Liberalism is a disease which makes people not see the real world they live in.

One of my sisters once bragged to me that she bought a $37,000 car. Really, what kind? A Buick. I told her I know that car sells for low 20s. Then she said "Well, it will be $37,000 after I pay it off.".

Like you said, liberals see things in a whacked-out way. The Buick fell apart in a few years and she stilled owed the money. She and her husband went bankrupt later on. They're now living rent-free in a Las Vegas apartment, because the landlord went bankrupt and told the tenants not to bother paying rent. That was over a year ago.

[Publius6961]

Not only that, but the $400,000 "savings" is probably bogus too.

Oh it's real all right.
What they fail to include is the cost of the permanent high maintenance required, and the little matter that the "free money" used to build the green system was many millions of federal "free" dollars.

That's true of every major public solar project.

[Amberdawn]

Certainly, thanks for the info as well. I had no idea she became Mayor.