Officials interested in energy efficiency and weatherization joined U.S. Rep. Tom Perriello, D-5th, at a roundtable discussion at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research on Monday afternoon to share their ideas on new energy projects.
It was part of Perriello’s “New Energy for the 5th Tour” throughout the 5th District.
At issue was how to best spend the federal stimulus money available for area weatherization projects and sustain that effort to create new industries.
“We want the biggest bang for the buck, and we are more than willing and ready to pool our resources to serve as many as possible,” said Sherman Saunders, Danville mayor and executive director of Pittsylvania County Community Action, the agency that administers weatherization projects in the cities of Danville and Martinsville and Pittsylvania and Henry counties.
PCCA typically has half a million dollars yearly for home weatherization projects, but stimulus money is adding another $1.1 million over the next 18 months — and possibly $1.1 million more over the course of the three-year period.
“We are excited about this announcement,” Perriello said. “This area is economically depressed, but an area of great opportunity. This is about making sure we have the capacity to train and match funds.”
One of the issues discussed was the problem of motivating landlords to weatherize their rental homes.
“As a utility, we see the need to better market energy efficiency,” Joe King, assistant city manager for utilities, said. “The final solution will be making this attractive to the landlord.”
King, along with City Councilmen David Luther and Gary Miller, proposed the idea of having homes certified as energy efficient, which would not only benefit residents but would provide a new training and industry for the future.
Karl Stauber, executive director of the Danville Regional Foundation, concurred with the need to multiply the effects of the stimulus money.
“I would hope that when the stimulus money is gone, we will have 500 people trained in a whole array of energy-efficient businesses,” he said.
Perriello agreed.
“I think there really is the potential for Southern Virginia as a region to put ourselves at the forefront of a new energy economy,” he said. “This is the opportunity for us to improve the housing stock of the city, save money on utility bills and train people to move into a new industry.”
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