Enterprise Community Partners, a national nonprofit organization, wants every affordable housing unit in the U.S. to be green by 2020. Now, thanks to that bold ambition, a Cleveland apartment building will receive a green makeover, making it healthier and more energy-efficient for the people that live there.

Enterprise recently announced that it had closed on its first loan in the Ohio Green Communities Retrofit Fund, a $1 million program to renovate older apartment buildings so that they are more energy-efficient. Harvard Village Elderly Apartments, a 49-unit rental building for low- to moderate-income seniors owned by National Church Residences, will receive a $250,000 loan from the Fund.

National Church Residences plans a $1.4 million retrofit for the property, including new windows and doors and new insulation. The rehabilitation project will be funded by the Ohio Weatherization Assistance Program, the City of Cleveland and owner equity, in addition to the Enterprise loan.

"The theory we're trying to prove is that the savings realized by completing energy retrofits are more than sufficient to pay off the low-interest rehab loan," explains Marc McDermott, Vice President of Ohio Enterprise Community Partners. "It's a tough proposition, because you've got to have an owner that is confident in the energy audit's recommendations and willing to take on debt."

The Harvard Village Elderly Apartments was built as a schoolhouse in 1920. Slavic Village has become known for its commitment to sustainability initiatives, including community gardens, the Green Corps learning farm and a farmers' market.

Source: Marc McDermott
Writer: Lee Chilcote