Woodlen Place Apartments, a POAH property in Kansas City, MO has received a Leading Edge grant to increase energy and water efficiency, reduce climate pollution and generate renewable energy under the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP).
Leading Edge grants and loans will also reduce housing operating costs, promote the use of green building materials, and improve the quality of life for residents by making their homes more resilient to climate hazards according to the HUD announcement issued yesterday. A total of of $69.1 million was awarded to 11 properties that participate in the HUD Section 8 project-based rental assistance program for low-income individuals and families across 10 states.
'HUD’s Green and Resilient Retrofit Program is spurring investments in green building that reduce carbon emissions, keep residents healthier, make communities safer, and help combat the effects of climate change,' said Ethan Handelman, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing Programs.
'Far too many Americans struggle to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer,” said John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for International Climate Policy. “Today’s awards from the Department of Housing and Urban Development will boost the quality of life for thousands of moderate- and low-income American families by making their homes safer and more comfortable.'"
President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act-the largest climate investment in history-established the GRRP in 2022 to fund energy efficiency and climate resiliency improvements for multifamily properties participating in HUD’s project-based rental assistance programs. The investments announced today will advance environmental justice in line with President Biden’s Justice40 Initiative, which sets a goal that 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.
The grants and loans announced today are the first in Vermont and Wyoming and bring the total amount of funding under this program to more than $842 million in 39 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. This is the fourth and final set of awards made under the GRRP’s Leading Edge category, which provides funding to properties with plans to make significant energy efficiency improvements related to carbon reduction, renewable energy generation, the use of clean building materials with lower embodied carbon. Two remaining award announcements for the Comprehensive and Elements categories are expected in the coming months.
Photo: Exterior image of Woodlen Place Apartments
Read the full HUD press release: Biden-Harris Administration Announces $69 Million in New Investments | HUD.gov / U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)