President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge welcomed six new multifamily housing authority and owners. AHEAD, Inc (Littleton, NH), Gragg Cardona Partners (Washington, DC), Housing Authority of the Birmingham District (Birmingham, AL), Newark Housing Authority (Newark, NJ), The DeBruler Co. (Libertyville, IL), and Windsor Locks Housing Authority (Windsor Locks, CT) all announced they are joining the Challenge.
Collectively, they are committed to improving energy efficiency of more than 5.5 million square feet of additional floor space, an area the size of more than 115 football fields, by at least 20 percent in the next decade. President Obama launched the Better Buildings Challenge in February 2011 to help American commercial, industrial, and multifamily buildings become at least 20 percent more energy efficient by 2020. More than 85 multifamily partners have participated in the Challenge.
The Obama Administration is also calling on Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contract (PRAC) properties serving elderly and disabled Californians to take advantage of the PRAC Shared Savings incentive HUD released in September 2014. The incentive allows owners to utilize realized utility bill savings to make needed energy and water improvements at their property as part of the Better Buildings Challenge.
The NH&RA Preservation Through Energy Efficiency initiative has worked closely with partners of the Better Buildings Challenge. Our regional Road Show series helps owners and developers make their properties more energy efficient through water and energy retrofits. Our next Road Show event is on April 9, 2015 in Indianapolis, IN. Click here for more information.
