The city will look at making changes to a program that provides low-interest loans to homeowners for clean energy upgrades. The Clean Energy Improvement program was at capacity just a week after launching earlier this year — now city council will consider removing the annual cap to provide money to more homeowners sooner.
The program is administered by Alberta Municipalities in partnership with the city and provides financing for projects, with repayment tied to property tax bills. It supports projects such as window upgrades, adding solar power, increasing insulation and installing a tankless hot water system.
The program totals $3.8 million and is set up for $800,000 to be used in 2023, $900,000 in 2024, $1 million in 2025 and $1.1 million in 2026.
A report to city council notes this year is full and there is a waitlist that can fill the entirety of next year already.
“The Federation of Canadian Municipalities has indicated that they are flexible on loan terms for the program and could facilitate early payments,” the report says. “What is proposed is to eliminate the yearly restriction while keeping the overall funding the same. This would allow the program to move forward more quickly than originally estimated and would allow citizens to be served in a more timely manner.”
Council will consider making the change at its Oct. 17 meeting.
BACKGROUND: Clean Energy Improvement Program at capacity a week after launching in Lethbridge