Kade Gajdusek, Contributing Photographer

New Haveners may see their energy bills drop in the coming months thanks to the city’s new partnership with New England Smart Energy Group, Mayor Justin Elicker announced Thursday morning. 

With the help of $1.5 million in pandemic-era federal funding, the new Energy Efficient Elm City Program will provide residents access to low or no-cost energy-saving and home-warming installations, as well as guidance from energy experts. The program will cover 1,250 eligible residents or 725 households making up to 80 percent area median income — $83,650 in a three-person household —  to warm their homes and pay for costly heating bills. 

“It’s winter and it’s cold outside but we’re trying to make sure that it’s warm inside — and warmer and warmer because of this incredible program that we are talking about today,” Elicker said at the Thursday press conference. “The average household saves 10 to 30 percent of their annual energy bills with just weatherization and several energy efficiency upgrades alone.”

As a part of the initiative, recipients will have access to home energy assessments, weatherization and insulation installments, heat pump systems and electrical panel upgrades for little to no cost. Efficient renovations will reduce energy usage, and in turn, reduce carbon emissions tied to leakage, Elicker said.

Elicker emphasized that beyond curbing climate change, the program will also incidentally lessen the exorbitant costs of household energy bills. This crystalizes the threefold impact of making houses warmer, decreasing environmental strain and making the day-to-day more affordable. 

The press conference kicks off the campaign to widely promote the program. Ensuring accessibility is a priority for Steve Winter ’11, executive director of climate and sustainability for the city of New Haven, whose department is spearheading the initiative. 

One of the things we’ve heard from folks is ‘I’m often not eligible.’ So we’ve really tried to expand the eligibility for these funds,” Winter said. “And the idea is to do that as much as possible at no cost.” 

Winter thought it imperative that people eligible for the program be properly notified about their standing, addressing doubts and misconceptions that the initiative is “too good to be true.” On top of mailing letters and sending emails, the New England Smart Energy Group will also canvass door-to-door and table at local events. Lastly, members of the Board of Alders will send flyers and emails to their contact lists, another prong of the “big, digital megaphone.” 

From there, selected applicants will be given an initial energy assessment, preliminary insulations and quick, efficient fixes, Winter said. The need for larger amendments and changes to the properties will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. 

“When I got the letter from NESE, I did think it was too good to be true, but when I called them, they were very helpful,” Maria Gant, whose house had previously been renovated, said. “I can tell you that it is a stark difference … The workers were very helpful [in] explaining a lot of things to me.” 

Gant added that, as a new homeowner with a long to-do list, the additional help and consultation were vital to her understanding of her property, its warmth and its general efficiency. 

The initiative comes amidst intra-governmental, federal, state and local acrimony, with the White House only recently rescinding its decision to suspend federal funding. For now, New Haven officials expressed optimism that the city can pass policies that contribute positively to the nation while still prioritizing local constituents. 

The city is doing so much to work on climate initiatives and I think that it’s particularly important at this moment when we aren’t seeing the national leadership,” Elicker said. “Cities and states really need to step up and do something good for the climate. It isn’t just about caring for our earth but it is also about caring for our residents.” 

The $1.5 million in federal funding for the program comes from the American Rescue Plan Act.

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KADE GAJDUSEK