City of Lakewood Partnering with Sustainability Solutions Group to Develop City-Wide Climate Action Plan

The City of Lakewood announced today that Sustainability Solutions Group (SSG) has been chosen as the consultant to help Lakewood develop and implement its Climate Action Plan (CAP). The CAP’s data collection has begun, and public engagement opportunities will occur over the course of the project.  The final plan is expected to be completed Fall 2022.

“We are excited about this important step in moving forward with a Climate Action Plan for Lakewood,” said Mayor Meghan F. George. “My administration and City Council have worked diligently together to build awareness and momentum for environmental projects aimed at improving air and water quality in Lakewood. I have consistently heard Lakewood residents voicing support for green policy in our city and moving forward with a Climate Action Plan will allow us to create a unified strategy that employs best practices to benefit our entire community.”

Building upon the work of the 2019 Resiliency Task Force, the CAP will support the City’s overall sustainability efforts and contribute to other current planning efforts. The City of Lakewood has taken the initiative to be a regional leader in its dedication to using a holistic, city-wide lens when implementing sustainable projects.

The goal of the CAP is to better define objectives and milestones and prioritize next steps towards the goal of reducing emissions for city operations and across the broader community. Additionally, creating Lakewood’s first CAP through an equity lens will help meet the City’s stated 100% renewable energy goal while working to ensure everyone benefits from this transition. The CAP will pull together a variety of isolated mitigation and adaptation/resiliency initiatives into a forward-focused, comprehensive plan to create momentum and accountability within the City, its Resiliency Task Force, and other partners.

“After reviewing several well-qualified firms, SSG was chosen because of their extensive experience working with cities tackling climate change,” said Shawn Leininger, Director of Planning & Development for the City of Lakewood. “SSG is a team of experts that proved they are not only climate modeling and data professionals, but also take great care to tailor their communication to their audience.”

For over 15 years, SSG has supported communities big and small that are striving to build low-carbon, energy-efficient, healthy, and equitable futures. The firm has offices in Canada, the U.S., and Chile, and is at the forefront of climate action planning in North America.

For more information about the City of Lakewood’s Climate Action Plan, please visit https://www.lakewoodoh.gov/climateactionplan

For more information about SSG, please visit http://www.ssg.coop.