[Durham INC] Durham Accepting Neighborhood Energy Retrofit Applications

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

For Details, Contact:

Amy Blalock

Sr. Public Affairs Specialist

(919) 560-4123 x 11253

(919) 475-7735 (cell)

Amy.Blalock at durhamnc.gov

 

For Immediate Release:  January 8, 2010

 

 

Durham Now Accepting Applications for Neighborhood Energy Retrofit
Program

First-Round Deadline for Neighborhoods to Apply is January 30th

 

DURHAM, N.C. - Durham neighborhood groups interested in saving money on
their energy bills by improving the energy efficiency of their
individual homes now have a chance to apply to participate in the
first-ever Neighborhood Energy Retrofit Program.  

 

The program, overseen by the Durham City-County Sustainability Office,
is now accepting neighborhood applications.  According to Tobin Freid,
sustainability manager for the Durham City-County Sustainability Office,
the goal of the program is to create jobs in the home retrofit industry
while bringing hundreds of homes in several Durham neighborhoods relief
from the cold and heat, as well as relief in the wallet of the
homeowners.   "Our goal with this program is to provide home energy
retrofits to approximately 690 homes in up to 14 neighborhoods through
two phases," Freid said.  "Retrofits include sealing air leaks in
heating and air conditioning ductwork, installing programmable
thermostats, sealing air leaks in attics and crawlspaces and installing
attic insulation.  These cost-saving retrofits will not only save the
homeowner significant dollars in the utility bill, but will also help
our community reduce our carbon footprint by using less energy to heat
and cool our homes."  The City and County of Durham adopted a Greenhouse
Gas Emissions Reduction Plan in 2007, which calls for a 30 percent
reduction in emissions from residences, businesses, and institutions by
2030.

 

Since this program targets neighborhoods, not just individual homes, a
neighborhood group must submit an application stating that it has at
least 100 homes meeting the criteria of being 2,000 square feet or less;
single story; free of unvented gas appliances in the living space; and
not have other hazardous features.  In addition, neighborhoods
interested in applying should also have at least 85 percent of the
eligible homes as being owner-occupied as well as a minimum of four,
committed neighborhood volunteers who will help sign up specific
homeowners for the retrofits provided by this program as well as teach
other neighbors basic, no-cost, and low-cost energy saving techniques.

 

According to Freid, the criterion for selecting the neighborhoods is
reflective of the limited resources and tight timeframe for rolling out
the new program.  "Unfortunately, not all neighborhoods will be able to
participate in the program in this phase because we have very limited
resources and are not able to do everything for everyone," Freid said.
"For example, we are limited in the number of rental properties that we
will be able to work with because we will have to work with both the
renter and the landlord to agree to participate and to pay the fee.  We
just don't have the resources to do that for significant numbers of
houses.  Because this is a stimulus-funded program, we must begin this
program immediately and show results very quickly."

 

A panel of representatives from the Durham City-County Sustainability
Office, the City's Department of Community Development, Clean Energy
Durham, and Advanced Energy will select the neighborhood groups to
receive the subsidized energy retrofits.  Once a neighborhood is
selected, neighborhood volunteers will educate residents about energy
efficiency and sign up qualified homes to get highly subsidized energy
retrofits.  

 

The retrofits have a market value between $800 and $2,000 depending on
the size and characteristics of the house.  Participating property
owners will be asked to pay between $200 and $300 to cover some of the
cost of the retrofits, and must allow access to their energy bills so
energy savings can be calculated.  Residents of participating
neighborhoods will also participate in workshops to learn no- and
low-cost, do-it-yourself energy-efficiency projects.  The program is
estimated to save participants at least 20 percent on their energy
bills.

 

The first phase of the Neighborhood Energy Retrofit Program is financed
through funds from the City of Durham's Energy Efficiency and
Conservation Block Grant Program.  This $2.1 million grant was made
available to the City of Durham under provisions of the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.  The second phase will be funded
through a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Climate
Showcase Communities Program.  Clean Energy Durham will be working with
selected neighborhoods and volunteers to provide training and program
support.

 

The first-round application deadline is Saturday, January 30, 2010.
According to Freid, applications will be accepted until the program is
filled, but early submissions are encouraged.  For more information on
the program or to request a neighborhood application, visit 
www.greenerdurham.net; e-mail energy at durhamnc.gov; or pick up an
application at the Durham County Engineering Office, located at 120 E.
Parrish St., 1st Floor, in downtown Durham, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday.  Interested neighborhood groups may also contact
Freid at (919) 560-7999 for more information.

 

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