SAN ANTONIO — City leaders and CPS Energy celebrated the milestone of 30,000 weatherized homes Monday morning as part of the utility company’s Case Verde program.
CPS Energy’s Case Verde weatherization program launched more than 10 years ago in an effort to keep homes energy efficient and reduce the cost of utility bills.
“Casa Verde is focused on equity and lowering the energy burden amongst the most vulnerable residents which aligns with our Vision 2027 mission of serving our customers equitably,” said Rudy D. Garza, President and CEO of CPS Energy. “Today we celebrated the weatherization of 30,000 homes but remain committed to continue the growth of this critical program to help our customers.”
CPS Energy contractors finished weatherizing the home of Janie Garcia last week by bolstering insulation, installing LED lighting and setting up solar panels on the roof.
Garcia is the 30,000th recipient of the Case Verde program. Eligible homeowners and renters must meet a certain income in order to be approved. For example, a family of three making $3,838 a month would qualify.
“It’s very exciting and I want to say again how happy I am with the program and all that they did and I’m sure it’s going to be help me out a great deal,” Garcia said.
The energy and cost savings program intends to reduce utility bills by 30-40% a month.
CPS Energy’s Sustainable Tomorrow Energy Plan (STEP) includes $350 million of city-approved funding to go toward programs like Case Verde over five years. CPS Energy plans to invest $82.5 million in Casa Verde to weatherize up to 16,000 homes and 20,000 multifamily units over the next three to five years.
“Now, we’re working towards doing both single-family and multi-family because we have a lot of renters in San Antonio and so we want to make sure that as we build that program out, that the person paying the bill is the one getting the benefit of the savings, so I think it’s a step in the right direction.”
Residents are encouraged to apply online at cpsenergy.com/casaverde or call 210-353-CASA (2272).