Mou Vang grew up in Section 8 housing in the Twin Cities and is familiar with the outdated infrastructure that often exists in affordable housing. Now she uses her experience and knowledge to serve the residents of Wisconsin Housing Preservation Corp (WHPC). Recently, with financial support from the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSC) Energy Innovation Grant Program (EIGP) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and technical assistance from Elevate Energy (Elevate), she co-led WHPC’s Green Team toward solar and battery storage for their Villa West property in Green Bay. The energy savings from these efforts will be reinvested in other areas of the property for the benefit of the residents.

WHPC has been dedicated to preserving, providing, and protecting homes for low- and moderate-income individuals and families across Wisconsin for over 20 years. With more than 9,000 housing units across Wisconsin, WHPC’s mission is not just about shelter; it’s about fostering stability, empowerment, and community well-being.

Central to WHPC’s initiatives is sustainability. In 2020 they convened a “Green Team” whose aim is to make its portfolio more environmentally friendly and efficient. By identifying opportunities for sustainable upgrades and prioritizing energy efficiency in its existing and new developments, WHPC is lowering utility expenses, reducing carbon emissions, and making the properties more comfortable for residents.

In April of 2022, WHPC received a grant from the PSC to create a microgrid at Villa West. This Green Bay property offers affordable housing for individuals earning no more than 50 percent of the area median income, with its residents being persons with disabilities or seniors.

“A lot of our properties were built in the mid to late 70s so they don’t have air conditioning,” said Mou. “In Wisconsin, not having air conditioning in a senior and disabled building is concerning.”

As an Asset Manager, Mou is regularly touring properties and can attest to the lack of progress that has been made in the quality of affordable housing. It reminded her of her childhood. On one hand, it forced her to reflect on how far she has come. On the other, she is well aware of the technological advancements that have been made since then and wonders why these properties seem to be frozen in time.

“The properties still look the same,” Mou said. “They still function the same. It really didn’t sit well with me. In 30 years, nothing’s changed.”

There is no shortage of work to be done to create more comfortable living spaces for residents living in affordable housing structures.

Embracing Sustainability through the Green Team

Partners at Elevate play a pivotal role in WHPC’s Green Team. Elevate is a nationwide non-profit specializing in clean affordable energy with a focus on low-income communities. Jake Archbell, Program Manager of Solar Programs at Elevate, leads efforts to study energy usage across properties and implement strategies to enhance efficiency.

For Jake, “The more complicated something is, the more I enjoy it. So, I love projects like this; I love doing new things and managing all the pieces and seeing them come together,” he said.

Jenna Grygier, Associate Director of High Performance Buildings at Elevate echoes Jake’s love for a challenge.

She said, “I’ve seen rooftop solar, ground-mounted solar, micro wind turbines, etc. but I’ve never seen battery storage on multi-family properties. So, it’s pretty exciting for me just to see how it all fits together.”

Bringing Solar and Battery Storage to Villa West

The initial phase of the Villa West project is nearly complete, with three of the twelve buildings having solar panels installed on the roof and backup solar battery storage. The solar panels alone amount to $14,000 of savings annually.

For WHPC, “that $14,000 is the difference between new flooring in the common space so that there’s less of a trip hazard,” said Mou.

While the battery storage has no direct cost savings for WHPC, the indirect savings are very real and tangible for the residents.

Mou explained, “Think of insulin that needs to be refrigerated but the power goes out; the medication may become unusable. Typically, insurance only covers this medication being refilled once a month. So now a person with limited income has to pay out of pocket for insulin to get through the month, in the event of an extended power outage.”

“It’s just something that I think a lot of people don’t think about because we don’t experience it firsthand,” added Mou.

When asked about the intangible benefits of this project for residents, Jenna highlighted an important, yet often overlooked aspect of making people feel valued.

She said, “Even if they [residents] don’t completely understand the mechanics of it, everyone can at least identify the solar panels. My hope is that it might make them feel more valued. That they live in a place where the owner cares enough to do something like renewable energy.”

Paving the Way for Clean Energy Benefits

Earlier this year, WHPC secured additional funding for Villa West to receive installations and storage for two more buildings. As each phase progresses, the vision of outfitting all buildings with solar and battery storage inches closer to reality, shaping a brighter, more sustainable future for Villa West and its residents.

Villa West Phase I was funded with a PSC EIGP award in 2022 for $500,000. WHPC will also be taking advantage of Focus on Energy incentives available at the time of installation completion to help fund this effort. Additionally, the IRA’s Elective Pay provision will enable Villa West to secure a federal rebate covering 30% of the solar project’s cost.

As WHPC continues to pave the way in the affordable housing sector, its commitment to sustainability stands as a testament to its ethos. Through the efforts of individuals like Mou and the Green Team, WHPC is providing housing, nurturing communities, and fostering a brighter, more sustainable future for all. In this journey towards inclusive, eco-conscious housing, WHPC is not just building structures; it’s building hope and resilience.

Mou added, “It truly is an investment back to the property and the tenants benefit from it.”

All photos by: Heidi Rudd

Karen Menéndez Coller is a mother, daughter, and community leader. Born in El Salvador, she and her family moved to California when she was 12 years old. Her husband, a Green Bay native, and their two children have called Wisconsin home for the past 10+ years and are “pretty proud of it, too.” She is the Executive Director of Centro, a nonprofit serving Latinx in Dane County.

Despite leaving El Salvador at a young age, Karen said, “I grew up very being very cognizant of my history and my heritage and the role that sustainability plays in the lives of immigrants when we come here. I think, for a long time, it’s been pretty clear to me that almost everybody at Centro, like me, has been impacted by climate change issues globally. And a lot of us ended up here affected by that.”

Over the past ten years, Centro has tripled in size, now serving close to 10,000 individuals. As the demand for services increased, their old space became insufficient. 

This April, the organization unveiled its new building on the south side of Madison. This space tells the story of how community, sustainability, and change intersect in the foundation of their building.

Creating a Safe Space for Latinx Families

Centro was founded in 1983 to provide services to Dane County’s Latin American community. Its mission is “To become a County where Latinx families can aspire upward to reach personal and professional goals while feeling engaged and strengthened with the tools for success.”

“We support an immigrant Spanish-speaking community that’s not supported by [existing] systems. They try, but they don’t know how to help. They don’t understand us as much. So we’re there [to support] as much as we can,” said Karen.

Karen describes Centro as incredibly collectivist in the way it operates, and the team approached the building design in the same collaborative way.

“Everything has been vetted very carefully. We saw the people that were involved as us. We saw ourselves in them. And so that’s how we found the architect, the furniture installers, the designers, everybody was very collective,” said Karen. “So in the process of creating this building, we spent a lot of time healing.”

Making the New Building Feel Like Home

The inspiration for the new building was simple. Centro wanted its community members to feel at home. To achieve this, Karen and her team collaborated with architects and interior designers to incorporate materials native to Latin America into the building design.

“When you walk in, the reception desk is wrapped in lava stone, which is incredibly significant for the Latin American community. It represents fire and strength. This is the first thing that people see when they walk in. We want them to know that this space was designed with them in mind.”

The decision to keep the space open and bright was intentional, especially for sustainability and education. The floors are reminiscent of cement homes in Latin America. Homes that have status, have cement. “That’s what we want our families to feel.” 

“We’re talking about getting a drone so that we can take live shots of the solar panels. There’s some rain gardens out in our exterior plaza that some of our staff and young people are going to upkeep and maintain. That’s been a wonderful way to engage the community. We have geothermal, we committed to that because we believe in the power of the earth and trying to get energy from the earth to sustain us. This building is fully electric and we have windows everywhere,” said Karen.

Her vision is for the families to look outside, see the seasons, and ask about the solar panels and geothermal installation. The goal is to incite curiosity about the different aspects of the building. The design highlights sustainability and forces the community to consider ways to incorporate it into their lives. For example, the building is near a trailer park that houses some community members. This prompted a conversation about solar panels on mobile homes and how to make them affordable.

Karen has learned a lot throughout the process. 

She said, “The team wants to know more and more. I’m proud that this [building] is on the south side. And I think that our families are going to be able to see it in a very organic way. It’s not a thing that people bring in, it’s just there to be a part of it.”

When in Doubt—Dream

When asked if she could give one piece of advice to organizations looking to create a space that is environmentally sustainable and culturally significant, Karen said, “You just have to start. It’s not as hard as you think. I never feel at Centro that there’s limitations. We’ve got to find the funders and connect with people that understand us, and that allow us to come first,” said Karen.

For Centro, the idea of a new space has been ten years in the making. The details were not flushed out, but they knew they wanted something bigger and more functional than they had in the past.

“In the end, we have nothing to lose on the outside. So many people haven’t cared about our families. And so what do we have to lose? We just have to kind of dream,” said Karen.

Centro’s dream was supported by Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy program, RENEW Wisconsin’s Solar for Good Program, and the City of Madison’s Backyard Solar Grant. In addition, they are expecting over $600,000 through the Inflation Reduction Act’s Direct Payment. This will offset 30% of the cost of their geothermal system and 40% of their solar system. 

Centro had always been strategic about the partnerships that they built and the relationships that they have nurtured. When the time came for fundraising, Karen found they had the support of the Dane County Executive, the Madison Mayor, and the Governor. She credits the authenticity of the organization and the relationships they’ve built as the key to success.

“We have a really strong partnership with the director at the Office of Environmental and Climate Sustainability. The Director, Kathy Kuntz, and I are like-minded. She’s always trying to break into communities of color with her work,” she said. “I always try to tell her that it’s easier than you think, you just have to understand our history and what drives us here.’”

For the team at Centro, the drive for this project was to feel connected with the space, the land, and their ancestors and to honor that through environmentally sustainable practices, which is exactly what they did. Ten years seems like a long time to dream and plan, but Karen said, “It’s worth it. It’s valuable. It feels like we’re honoring all the people who are still in El Salvador and other parts of the world that are not here. And we’re saying we’re going to do our part. So that hopefully, it’s a little bit safer and more sustainable over there.”