The city of Spokane is planning a $1.2 million project to upgrade the energy efficiency of several buildings over the next four months.

The Spokane office of Seattle-based mechanical and energy-efficiency contractor McKinstry Co. is designing the work and will serve as project manager.

Dorothy Webster, the city's administrative services director, says the project will be funded from $1.9 million the city received last September through a state energy efficiency conservation block grant. Some $450,000 of that grant was set aside to provide energy efficiency audits to homeowners in partnership with Avista Corp., of Spokane. Another $250,000 was used to conduct energy audits of city-owned buildings.

"From the audit, we selected a number of projects to make city-owned buildings more energy efficient. We chose buildings that are supported by the general fund, because the general fund is financially distressed right now," Webster says.

The buildings to receive energy-efficiency upgrades include the East Central Community Center, at 500 S. Stone; the Northeast Community Center, at 4001 N. Cook; and the West Central Community Center, at 1603 N. Belt. Other facilities to receive upgrades include Fire Station No. 7, at 1901 E. First; and Fire Station No. 15, at 2120 E. Wellesley. The city's vehicle maintenance building, at 1410 N. Normandie, and its street department building, at 901 N. Nelson, also will receive upgrades.

The work will involve projects such as installing sensors that will turn off lights in unoccupied areas of a building, Webster says. Energy-efficient lighting fixtures will be installed, and heating, cooling, and ventilation systems will be updated for increased efficiency.

McKinstry has called for proposals to prequalify subcontractors for plumbing, sheet metal duct work, electrical, demolition, acoustical ceiling, and painting jobs. Work will be done simultaneously on the buildings from the beginning of September through the end of December, Webster says.