Maryland Announces Opening of Green Grant Energy Efficiency Program

ANNAPOLIS, MD (August 24) – Governor O’Malley announced the opening of the Green Grant Rental Housing Preservation Program to promote energy efficiency and green building concepts while helping preserve affordable housing in communities affected by the federal Base Realignment and Closure process. The Green Grant is partially funded through a $4.5 million award which Maryland received from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation earlier this year.

“Preserving affordable rental housing is the best thing we can do to welcome new BRAC families to Maryland,” the governor said. “Not only is it good for the new families that BRAC-related jobs will bring, these Green Grants will promote the type of green building concepts that are so much a part of Maryland’s Smart, Green and Growing initiative.”

The program, undertaken in partnership with the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA), is part of the Maryland BRAC Preservation Initiative.

It will be managed by the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), and is part of the State’s “Smart, Green, and Growing” strategy. The Green Grant will help owners find ways to reduce operating expenses and tenant utility burdens as part of an effort to preserve affordable rental housing in those communities that are expecting a large influx of BRAC-related households. The participating counties are Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Cecil, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Prince George’s, and St. Mary’s.

“This funding will help reduce operating expenses for affordable rental housing,” said Secretary Skinner. “It also will be used for training and accreditation in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) building rating system. It’s a real plus for Maryland’s green and growing economy.”

The MacArthur Foundation’s support is part of their “Window of Opportunity” initiative, a $150 million, 10-year effort to preserve affordable rental homes across the nation. Maryland is one of only 12 states and cities to have been awarded funding under Window of Opportunity. The funding comes in the form of a $4 million low-interest loan and $500,000 in grant money.

The Green Grant matches a $75,000 grant from the MacArthur Foundation with $200,000 in matching funds from the MEA. It is one of five programs to be established under the Preservation Initiative, with the other four including: 1) a revolving loan fund for preservation of affordable rental housing in the eight BRAC counties ($4 million), 2) data analysis and assessment to better identify and target preservation activities ($250,000), 3) education and outreach efforts aimed at affordable rental property owners ($125,000), and 4) a preservation compact designed to streamline loan documents and underwriting procedures for affordable rental projects ($50,000).

MacArthur’s investment comes at a time when affordable rental housing will become increasingly scarce, partly due to the population and job growth expected as a result of military base expansions in Maryland. The State expects to see 25,000 new households arriving in the next three years, and anticipates an affordable housing shortfall of 78,000 units within the next eight years. The MD-BRAC Preservation Initiative aims to combat this trend by preserving 9,000 units of rental housing over the next ten years.