Big bucks are headed towards helping San Antonians literally keep a cooler home, thanks to Rep. Joaquin Castro. The local politician swung a hefty $1 million for the weatherization of low-income homes, part of a larger $10.6 million pie earmarked for community projects. The cash infusion is destined to grow CPS Energy's Casa Verde program, which arms houses in San Antonio against the brutal heat of summer and biting cold of winter with energy-saving upgrades. According to a statement by CPS Energy's top dog, Rudy Garza, some 500 homes are on deck to get these crucial repairs, making them ready and set for weatherization.
Here's the juice on what it means for locals: each home gets a once-over to find sneaky air leaks, then gets sealed up tight with caulking and weatherstripping, plus some added insulation and energy-efficient light bulbs for good measure. Last year, they celebrated hitting a milestone weatherizing 30,000 homes, and Castro is hell-bent on continuing that streak. In an effort to always move and to never stand still, they've even stretched the program to now include multifamily units. "This program has changed the lives of many CPS Energy customers, especially during our extremely hot summers and during the coldest days in winter," Garza said in a statement obtained by the San Antonio Report.
Rep. Castro is pushing the program as a win-win, good for both the environment and San Antonio families needing a leg up. He's gone to bat for local projects before, saying, “Every year, I’m glad to nominate community projects from across San Antonio for well-deserved federal funding to expand their work,” as he told the San Antonio Report. And this money talk happened after HR 4366, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, strolled through Congress and got the Biden stamp of approval.
Look at it this way: CPS Energy is pouring $82.5 million into Casa Verde over the next five years to cozy up as many as 16,000 homes. It's part of the utility's Sustainable Tomorrow Energy Plan, which got the thumbs up from the powers that be back in 2022 for a grand total of $350 million in funding. And here's something to chew on: program participants, on average, get about $4,500 worth of home weatherization improvements. They're also set up with energy assessments to pin down which improvements will most shrink their energy bills. Those interested in getting on the Casa Verde train can just hop on over to the CPS Energy website for all the details in English or Spanish, or reach out via phone or email.
