National Housing Trust and Children's Law Center Awarded $20M Community Change Grant from EPA
NATIONAL HOUSING TRUST AND CHILDREN'S LAW CENTER AWARDED $20M COMMUNITY CHANGE GRANT FROM EPA Funding will be used to retrofit over 700 affordable homes for improved health and sustainability
WASHINGTON, DC (July 26, 2024) –The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), through its Inflation Reduction Act Community Change Grant program, has awarded National Housing Trust (NHT) and its partner, Children’s Law Center (CLC), a $20 million grant in support of their D.C. Healthy, Green, and Affordable Housing initiative (D.C. HGA Housing). Through the initiative, NHT will retrofit 785 homes within affordable multifamily buildings in Washington, D.C., to improve indoor air quality, cut greenhouse gas emissions, and reduce energy costs for residents and housing providers. It will also invest in the local community through workforce development efforts that will increase the number of contractors in the area qualified to work on multifamily building retrofits.
“This grant supports NHT’s commitment to creating healthier, more affordable housing for under-resourced renters in our home city of Washington D.C.,” said NHT’s CEO, Priya Jayachandran. “Our work will advance environmental justice in disinvested neighborhoods by ensuring that current and future residents can live in affordable housing that is resilient to climate impacts and free of harmful pollutants that lead to poor health outcomes.”
The D.C. HGA Housing initiative focuses on multifamily buildings where children suffer from chronic asthma. Washington, D.C. has some of the highest rates of childhood asthma in the country. NHT and its partners aim to reduce asthma triggers and other respiratory illnesses by eliminating fossil fuel use in homes and removing other indoor air contaminants.
"Our team advocates for thousands of DC families each year – many times working with children who end up in the ER because of asthma exacerbated by unhealthy housing conditions,“ said Children’s Law Center Executive Director Judith Sandalow. “When one of those families lives in a multifamily building, we know that dozens of their neighbors are facing the same issues: building-wide water intrusion, mold behind their walls, poor ventilation, mice moving from one apartment to the next. This innovative partnership will allow us to remediate entire buildings – improving the lives of families for generations to come.” The D.C. HGA Housing initiative takes an integrated approach to overcome barriers to retrofitting affordable multifamily housing. The initiative combines resident engagement, technical assistance for affordable housing providers, workforce development opportunities, and collaborative community partnerships. In addition to Children’s Law Center, D.C. HGA Housing’s partners include Children’s National Hospital, VEIC, Latino Economic Development Center and close collaboration with D.C. city government. Find more information on the D.C. HGA Housing initiative here.
About National Housing Trust
National Housing Trust (NHT) is a national nonprofit organization and affordable housing provider of nearly 4,000 affordable units throughout the mid-Atlantic. NHT creates and preserves affordable homes to provide opportunity, advance racial equity, reduce economic disparities and strengthen community resilience through practice and policy. NHT provides expertise nationally and locally in preserving and improving affordable housing through policy innovation and advocacy, real estate development, lending, resident engagement, and energy solutions. Learn more at www.nationalhousingtrust.org.
About Children’s Law Center
Children’s Law Center believes every child should grow up with a strong foundation of family, health and education and live in a world free from poverty, trauma, racism and other forms of oppression. Since 1996 Children’s Law Center has provided legal assistance to benefit more than 50,000 children and families in Washington D.C. and has used its expertise to advocate for city-wide solutions to the problems that prevent children from having a solid foundation of family, health and education. CLC’s attorneys work with families, landlords, community health clinics, and city housing code enforcement agencies to resolve substandard housing conditions that contribute to children’s asthma morbidity. For more information, please visit www.childrenslawcenter.org.
