"President Obama is committed to passing comprehensive energy and climate legislation that will generate millions of jobs, reduce the threat of deadly pollution and restore America's role as a global leader in the clean energy industry," Donovan said. "Increasing energy efficiency among American's affordable housing stock is a central goal of both HUD and the Obama Administration, because it will not only create jobs, but will also lower operating costs for residents, public housing authorities and taxpayers."
Donovan was the keynote speaker at the HOPE VI Green Building and Energy Efficient Development Conference,
a HUD-sponsored, 2-day conference held in Washington to train, educate
and inform public housing authorities, affordable housing developers
and contractors on how to plan, design, build and maintain energy
efficient affordable housing communities.
Attendees attended sessions focused on the latest in environmentally-friendly
or "green" technologies, construction practices and materials, financing green developments,
certifications and jobs, as well as energy audits. Housing authority development
experts who are leading the way in building energy-efficient affordable
housing communities included representatives from
government agencies, including the EPA to
talk about its ENERGY STAR program and the Department of Energy to
discuss the agency's new and emerging building technologies program. HOPE VI Revitalization Grants HOPE VI Revitalization
grants first awarded in 1993, have given 248 communities a combined
$5.9 billion to redevelop their severely distressed public housing and
to create mixed-income communities. The program has also been credited with transforming neighborhoods
and improving the quality of life for families who lived in the old
developments that were often crime-ridden and drug-infested. HOPE VI
recipients have the opportunity to replace the old public housing with
new housing using the latest green innovations that can save both the
housing authority and residents' energy expenses over time. Portland Housing Authority shared information about
salvage and recycling during demolition;
dedicated rapid bus line;
storm water management;
Energy Star appliances
making green roofs standard practice at all new developments
solar water pre-heat systems standard in new developments. These systems save energy by using the sun to heat water for use in the home for cooking, showering or laundering clothes.
high-efficiency heating and cooling systems in their public housing
state-of-the-art ventilation and filtration systems, as part of their "Breathe Easy" program, have substantially improved indoor air quality and the health of their public housing residents.
HUD's larger goal is to make
ARRA Funding (Recovery Act) for Public Housing In addition to the HOPE VI grants, HUD
has $600 million available under the American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act (Recovery Act) for public housing authorities to create more energy
efficient public housing units. This is part of the $4 billion for
public housing through the Recovery Act, which many housing authorities
are using for energy efficient upgrades and improvements. HUD also
recently entered into a partnership with the Department of Energy to
make HUD public and assisted housing categorically eligible for the
Department of Energy's Recovery Act weatherization funds. This
partnership will allow low-income residents to weatherize their homes
to increase efficiency and lower costs.