by Paul Bass The New Haven independent
Hundreds of New Haveners may end up with lower energy bills thanks to a $50,000 grant New Haven is receiving.
The grant comes from Energize CT, a state government-utility consortium that promotes green-energy programs.
New Haven’s government was one of 17 recipients of “community partnership” grants announced Thursday. The grants help communities reach out to people to take advantage of home and office energy assessments (how to caulk and re-window and otherwise insulate your building to require less heat or A/C) and of programs to switch from oil burning to geothermal heat pumps.
City Climate & Sustainability Director Steve Winter said his office plans to use the money to pay for referrals from Community Action Agency and Operation Fuel of families that can qualify and benefit from the programs; to work with New England Smart Energy to help people upgrade to heat pumps; and to pay for mailers and events to inform people of the programs. Winter said the goal is to connect with at least 200 referred people.
The grants go in some communities to nonprofits that do on-the-ground outreach green-energy work. New Haven has an office (Winter’s) that does the work as well.
“The city of New Haven, with its sustainability department, is definitely ahead of the curve and is really thinking about about these issues,” Marissa Westbrook, a UI employee who manages conservation programs for the Energize CT alliance, said during a conversation Thursday on WNHH FM’s “Dateline New Haven.”
She noted that ratepayers pay for Energize CT’s programs through a “system benefits charge” mandated by state government.
Westbrook appeared on “Dateline” with Ian Johnson, a 2025 high school grad who now works full-time in HVAC installation and maintenance. Johnson got started on the path to gaining his certification in part of an Energize CT program called Green STEP (Sustainability Technical Education Program). Green STEP is aimed at keeping the state’s 46,000-member green energy workforce filled and trained in order to carry out efforts to combat climate change and save people money on their bills.
“I love the job,” Johnson said of installing and cleaning out furances, changing nozzles and pumps and filters. “Every time my alarm goes off, it’s funny, I actually have energy. I get excited. I love using my brain. Which wires go where … How do I make these pipes fit in the spot that I need to at the right length and make it all look nice?”