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Rental Housing Preservation Program - MD-BRAC - Green Grant

Purpose of Program

The purpose of the Green Grant Rental Housing Preservation Program – MD-BRAC is to promote energy efficiency in affordable rental housing developments in certain communities affected by the federal Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process. In partnership with the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA), the Green Grant reimburses eligible applicants for costs associated with Energy Audits for multi-family rental housing or for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) accreditation and training. The program is being undertaken as part of the State’s efforts to 1) promote awareness of the benefits of energy efficiency and green building concepts and 2) promote rental housing preservation efforts.

The Green Grant program is part of DHCD’s larger affordable rental housing preservation initiative funded in part by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, known as the MD-BRAC Preservation Initiative. The MacArthur Foundation’s support for this initiative is part of their Window of Opportunity campaign, 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 Green Grant funding comes in the form of a $75,000 grant from the MacArthur Foundation, and matching funds of $200,000 from the MEA. Successful applicants for Green Grant funding will be encouraged to pursue additional resources to carry out energy efficiency improvements and preservation efforts, under the MacArthur Preservation Initiative and other DHCD programs.

** DHCD is also now offering several free training seminars on the International Code Council’s National Green Building Standards. This will provide training on how to build green and relate it to the existing building codes.Register for a seminar ...

Eligible Types of Housing for Energy Audits

Restricted to affordable multifamily rental property in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Cecil, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Prince George’s or Saint Mary’s Counties. Multifamily rental housing may include apartment buildings, townhouses, single-family homes, single room occupancy (SRO) and shared housing facilities with five (5) or more units. “Affordable” means rental housing with existing income or rent restrictions, or housing with rents that do not exceed 100% of the Fair Market Rent (FMR) for the area, as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Documentation demonstrating that the development meets these criteria must be submitted with the application.

Eligible Applicants

For Energy Audits:
Owners of affordable multifamily rental housing developments located in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Cecil, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Prince George’s, or Saint Mary’s Counties, or the owner’s agent.

For LEED Training:
• Owners, developers, property managers or employees of an affordable rental housing development located in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Cecil, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Prince George’s, or Saint Mary’s Counties. Documentation demonstrating that the rental housing development meets the affordability requirement (see “Eligible Types of Housing”, above) must be submitted with the application.
• With the recommendation of the respective County Housing Department, employees in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, Cecil, Frederick, Harford, Howard, Prince George’s, and Saint Mary’s Counties.
• Employees of DHCD and MEA.

Terms

These are grant funds to reimburse applicants for costs incurred. All property owners or individuals who receive funding will be required to complete a survey at the completion of the energy audit or training, as appropriate.

To obtain reimbursement for costs of an energy audit of an Eligible Building:
• The energy auditor must be certified by the Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET), and/or the BPI, and demonstrate a minimum of two (2) years experience completing energy audits on multifamily residential buildings. The energy auditor may also qualify by documenting sufficient energy audit experience in multifamily or commercial building auditing as determined by MEA. List of Green Grant Approved Auditors... 
• The Energy Audit must utilize the Building Performance Institute (BPI) multifamily housing energy audit methodology or an acceptable commercial energy audit methodology, as determined by MEA.
• When making recommendations for new or replacement building equipment, appliances or components, the energy auditor shall specify items that meet the minimum energy efficient criteria as determined by the current ENERGY STAR standard.
• Two (2) copies of the energy audit will be required, one for the property owner/developer and one for Maryland DHCD. An electronic version of the audit shall be made available for a period of two (2) years from the initial presentation of the audit. MEA shall be provided with an electronic copy of the audit.
• Any questions concerning the acceptability of the energy auditor and audit methodology will be directed to the MEA.

To obtain reimbursement for costs of LEED training sessions or certification for Eligible Person(s).
• The applicant will submit a training plan to DHCD for approval.
• Various LEED training plans are acceptable, including those leading to a LEED Green Associate Certification or the LEED AP-Plus Certification. Individual or group training sessions on LEED programs may also be requested.

Maximum Grant Amount

Reimbursement of up to a maximum of $10,000 per building for Energy Audits
Reimbursement for up to a maximum of $2,500 per person for LEED training

How to Apply

Applicants should complete the application  along with the supporting documentation and submit it to DHCD at the following web address: MDBRACpreservation@mdhousing.org. PDF files are preferred. Applications will be accepted on an on-going basis and evaluated taking into consideration how the application furthers both the preservation and the energy efficiency purposes of the program, as well as the availability of funding. DHCD has a total of $275,000 available for this program. Due to limitations in funding, reimbursement costs are not guaranteed.

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