More Spokane Homes to get Weatherization

The energy efficiency of Spokane real estate is about to go up with the addition of federal funds to a program to increase energy efficiency.

clipped from www.spokesman.com Weatherization gets a federal boost Bert Caldwell The Spokesman-Review Federal stimulus money will double the pace of home weatherization in Spokane, creating jobs and reducing dependence on imported oil in the process, officials said Tuesday. Spokane Neighborhood Action Programs, which administers the federal Weatherization Action Program in the community, will get $1.73 million annually over the next three years, on top of the $465,000 received currently, said Chris Davis, the organization’s director of housing improvement. She said weatherization saves an average homeowner $358 a year on utility bills. To qualify for the program, a family of four can earn no more than about $44,000, she said. Cantwell said the new money from the U.S. Department of Energy will boost the number of Spokane homes weatherized each year with federal dollars to more than 900, from about 320 now. Still more homes are weatherized using funds from other sources, said SNAP Executive Director Larry Stuckart.