Mayor Announces Pilot Program to Lower Energy Costs

Today,Mayor Freddie O'Connell announced a new pilot program to help lower energy costs for Nashvillians.

The program, called PowerBack Nashville, is a new partnership between Metro Nashville, CLEAResult, Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Rebuilding Together Nashville and United Way of Greater Nashville. The pilot will provide free home improvements to selected low-income Nashville households whose homes were damaged by Winter Storm Fern. The goal is to lower energy costs while making homes safer, more comfortable, and better prepared for future extreme weather.

Altogether, PowerBack Nashville will provide up to 100 households a professional home energy assessment, free energy-saving items such as LED light bulbs and faucet aerators, and information about additional resources. Of those 100 households, 25 to 30 homes will receive a full package of no cost insulation, air sealing, HVAC, and duct cleaning.

"A home with lower bills is one a family can afford to stay in," said Mayor Freddie O'Connell. "A stronger, better-insulated home is one that can be passed down, a resource that serves a family for generations. And a more prepared city is one where neighbors are safer when extreme weather strikes."

This is the latest initiative by the Mayor's Office Innovation Team (i-team), which has been developing multiple tools to bring down energy costs for residents.

The first program, called Insulation for Impact, was a joint effort with Nashville Electric Service (NES), TVA, and NeedLink that provided no cost attic insulation for older adult homes. More than 60 homes received insulation, saving 25,000 kilowatt hours of energy and reducing carbon emissions, while increasing the comfort of their homes.

Dr. Myron Oglesby-Joyce has worked closely with the i-team in her North Nashville community. She said this kind of hands-on approach to understanding the needs of residents is vital to helping communities recover from winter weather.

"Ice does not discriminate. It doesn't pick and choose the communities in which it will reside. And we were all witnesses to that. The devastating impact left a resilient community almost flattened, but to have the involvement of an i-Team where people can come through the doors of a community and find out, 'How can I get help?' That's what citizens look for."

To apply for PowerBack Nashville, residents can fill out this form .