ICAST Exceeding Goals for Healthy Homes Grant. In 2022, the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development awarded ICAST nearly $2 million for a Healthy Homes (HH) Production Grant in New Mexico. We have been diligently working on retrofitting low-income multifamily housing units, with the aim of significantly improving health conditions and energy efficiency for the residents.
As part of this program, ICAST has implemented an integrated Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) + HH assessment model to determine and execute the best scopes of work. The retrofit solutions can include measures from both programs, such as pest control, ventilation improvements, HVAC system upgrades, and more. Our goal was to deliver combined assessments to 200 units and retrofit 100 units before the program ends in 2025. We have already surpassed these targets, completing 105% of the assessments and 114% of the retrofits planned.
ICAST is thrilled to deliver work that enhances the quality of life for vulnerable communities in multifamily housing. Further, we are grateful to our longtime partner, the New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority, for their work to support this effort.
Learn More
- The Weatherization Assistance Program
- The Healthy Homes Program
- ICAST’s Other Efforts to Increase Program Coordination.
ICAST Wraps Up Its Program for Pepco Electric in Washington, D.C. ICAST recently concluded its work on a three-year, whole-building deep retrofit program for Pepco in D.C. It targeted affordable multifamily properties with three or more units, and focused on paying custom incentives tied to energy savings. ICAST deployed its comprehensive “one-stop-shop” approach, which includes energy assessments, design and engineering, construction management, access to financing, workforce training, tenant education, and reporting.
We allocated the vast majority (80%) of the program’s $11.25 million in funding for customer incentives, and employed a tiered incentive structure with incentives for gas and electric upgrades and incentives for a gas-to-electric fuel switch. All of the incentives and ICAST, as the program implementer, were paid on a 100% pay-for-performance structure. Program outcome examples:
- ~$9,000,000 in total rebates distributed
- ~$18,394,632 in lifetime utility cost savings
- ~132 high-efficiency hot water heaters installed
- ~3,936 high-efficiency heat pumps installed
ICAST worked with policy advocates and other stakeholders to launch this Program, including District agencies, housing providers, intermediaries, contractors, other implementers, equipment manufacturers, District residents, and others. We worked with Exelon/Pepco and the Task Force to design a program that worked with existing energy efficiency and housing assistance programs administered throughout the District. We coordinated our implementation plans with the various stakeholders, agencies, and programs, including the Department of Energy and Environment, the DC Sustainable Energy Utility, the Department of Housing and Community Development, the District’s Housing Finance Agency, DC Housing Authority, and others.