- Category:
Energy Efficiency - Published:
June 5, 2012 - Updated:
July 6, 2021
Video: Energy Efficiency to help Trenton Housing Authority residents stay cool this summer
Summer is right around the corner and if it’s anything like last summer, some parts of the country may experience some of the hottest temperatures in nearly half a decade. Last year, the 100+ degree heat combined with high humidity was brutal, especially for senior citizens who don’t always have the ability to find refuge from heat. However, one Northeast city has been taking innovative steps to ensure the safety and livelihood of its older residents are taken care of as we get closer to the start of summer.
This year, the Trenton Housing Authority (THA) is working to make its high-rise senior buildings both energy efficient and climate controlled as part an energy contracting program that will save an estimated $31 million in energy costs over the next 15 years and help improve the comfort of more than 3,000 residents. Specific upgrades include:
— Upgraded lighting in buildings, including brighter, higher efficiency lights
— New, better insulated windows
— New EnergyStar refrigerators
— Water conservation upgrades such as the installation of more energy efficient toilets that use less water and have a low flow
— Steam radiator controls
Watch the video below for more details.
Through an energy performance contract with Constellation, the housing authority found a budget-neutral way to make multiple improvements to its community housing by funding large energy efficiency projects without any upfront capital expenses. A few years ago, Constellation helped to retrofit THA’s buildings to be more energy efficient, and the ROI was both immediate and impactful. Phase 1 of that project reaped an estimated $10.3 million in savings, which is now being put to work to install additional conservation measures and upgrades including air conditioning in the senior housing.
Is your community making energy efficiency upgrades similar to these? Leave me a comment below, I’d love to hear about it!
