Projects, Partners, Homeowners, and Stakeholders Earn Recognition from Connecticut Green Bank

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In recognition of their commitment to the green economy and demonstrated leadership in their industries and communities during 2023, the Connecticut Green Bank presented the organization’s eighth annual awards this month, recognizing key partners in the dedicated network of contractors, developers, lenders, community leaders, and home and building owners.

The Connecticut Green Bank was established by the Connecticut General Assembly in 2011 as the nation’s first state-level green bank and has since supported the creation of more than 26,000 green jobs in the state while reducing the energy cost burden on over 66,000 families, businesses, and nonprofits.

“Each year, our list of honorees continues to expand, pulling together a broad cross-section of leaders and partners,” said Bryan Garcia, President and CEO of the Green Bank. “For 2023, we are recognizing the first projects and partnerships related to our new environmental infrastructure scope, as well as presenting special Chair’s and President’s Awards to Sustainable CT and their outgoing Executive Director Lynn Stoddard for their exceptional contributions to our communities.”

The award recipients include:

Chair’s and President’s Awards

Sustainable CT, its funding partners (Common Sense Fund, Hampshire Foundation, and Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation), and Lynn Stoddard, the organization’s first executive director, who is retiring this summer, are receiving the first awards from the Green Bank’s Chair and President.

In its first six years, Sustainable CT has inspired more than $3.8 million in community-led sustainability projects through its Community Match Fund and celebrated the certification of more than 70 towns while supporting the efforts of 131 municipalities.

Building Solutions Awards

Outstanding Project: Solar project at Meadow Ridge with Verogy

Working with Verogy, the leadership at Redding Life Care took advantage of all the economic and environmental benefits of going solar at Meadow Ridge, a senior living community in Redding. Many residents are excited to have the 732.48 kW system installed, with estimated cost savings to surpass $3.5 million over the project’s useful life, which makes everyone happy.

Outstanding Project: Solar and energy efficiency project at Enko Chem completed by Earthlight Technologies and Siemens

In 2023, Enko Chem embarked on a comprehensive clean energy program at its headquarters in Mystic. Using C-PACE financing, Enko installed energy-efficient lighting in offices, labs, and greenhouses, upgraded HVAC, and added a solar system anticipated to help it save nearly $3 million over the next 15 years. Enko has been working with Earthlight Technologies and Siemens to complete these projects.

Outstanding Partner, Solar MAP:

Town of Manchester

The Solar Marketplace Assistance Program (Solar MAP) provides towns and cities with the tools, resources, and guidance to develop solar projects for their properties and finance them with the Green Bank Solar PPA.

Leadership in Manchester has helped the town use more renewables to reduce its energy costs. The town is projected to save more than $100,000 annually and over $2 million over the term of the solar power purchase agreements with solar systems at seven municipal sites, including six schools. Manchester became one of the first towns to benefit from Solar MAP, the Green Bank’s technical support program that guides municipalities from the start to completion of the solar process.

Town of Groton

Like Manchester, town leaders in Groton have taken advantage of Solar MAP to bring solar to two newly constructed schools. This proactive approach of installing more than 440 kW of solar will save the municipality $770,000 throughout the power purchase agreement.

Top Performer

Earthlight Technologies

Earthlight Technologies, headquartered in Ellington, is a leading provider of clean energy solutions, offering solar, energy efficiency, and electric vehicle charging for both commercial and residential clients. The Green Bank recognizes Earthlight with our Top Performer award for integrating C-PACE into its business model and for developing excellent projects, including one of this year’s outstanding projects.

Above photo: Representatives from Top Performer Award Recipient Earthlight Technologies with Connecticut Green Bank representatives.

Accelerating PACE

AEC Solar

West Haven-based AEC Solar is an outstanding partner in C-PACE financing and has brought many new and repeat properties to C-PACE for funding, with more projects slated in the future.

Facility Solutions Group

Oxford-based Facility Solutions Group (FSG) continues incorporating C-PACE financing and all other Green Bank commercial financing products into its core sales process, resulting in a constant stream of qualified projects. The company has particularly excelled in working with nonprofits and schools, developing both solar PV and multi-measure comprehensive projects for that market segment.

Environmental Systems Co. (ESC)

West Hartford-based ESC, a Fidelity company, has a long history in integrated building controls and has incorporated solar and EV charging into its product portfolio. ESC has brought excellent projects to the C-PACE program for solar financing.

Smart Roofs Solar

Monroe-based Smart Roofs Solar closed its first C-PACE project in 2018 and closed number 32 this month, working with all the Green Bank commercial financing products and never turning away from a challenging opportunity.

Jodi French of KPT Renewables

The Green Bank recognizes Jodi French of KPT Renewables with the Accelerating PACE award for her uncommon role in the C-PACE market, where she identifies qualified properties and introduces the owners to her contractors and to C-PACE financing. She then guides these projects to closing and completion, working closely with the Green Bank.

Outstanding Partner

C-TEC Solar

Bloomfield-based C-TEC Solar has been a Green Bank partner for over 10 years. It has consistently demonstrated its technical expertise in handling on-site challenges and organizational and leadership capacity to deliver quality, cost-effective service. The company has recently been a key to helping replace outdated residential solar production meters.

Investment Solutions Awards

Outstanding Partners

Raise Green

Through a partnership with Raise Green, the first marketplace in the U.S. for local and inclusive impact investment into climate solutions, the Green Bank has issued nine successful Green Liberty Note offerings to investors, raising more than $2 million from citizens in Connecticut and beyond. As a result of our partnership, these Notes are offered in increments of just $100, making the green economy more accessible to more people.

PosiGen and M&T Bank

The Green Bank is committed to reducing the energy burden for underserved communities. PosiGen – a residential developer of solar PV systems, energy efficiency, and battery storage, particularly for low-to-moderate income households – and M&T Bank have been instrumental partners in these efforts. Together, we have offered affordable and predictable energy prices to more than 4,000 homeowners in Connecticut.

Skyview Ventures

Over the past five years, Green Bank and Skyview Ventures have been working to deploy solar PV projects throughout the state, providing competitive power purchase agreements to municipalities, schools, condominiums, and other commercial buildings.

CorePlus Credit Union

One of the original lenders in the Smart-E program, which celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2023, CorePlus Credit Union continues to be a leader in serving contractors and homeowners in the eastern part of the state. This year, CorePlus agreed to increase the maximum loan amount ($50,000) and loan maturities to 20 years.

Nutmeg State Financial Credit Union (NSFCU)

With branch locations throughout Hartford, Middlesex, and New Haven counties, NSFCU strives to “be the change” in the community. Through its participation in the Smart-E program, the credit union has helped hundreds of families make their homes more comfortable and energy efficient. NSFCU also increased its maximum loan amount to $50,000 with loan maturities to 20 years.

Outstanding Project

Fuel Cell Energy with Liberty Bank and Amalgamated Bank

Danbury-based Fuel Cell Energy owns and operates a 7.4-megawatt fuel cell park at the Naval Submarine Base that supplies power to Connecticut Municipal Electric Energy Cooperative members. Financed with loan funds from Liberty Bank, Amalgamated Bank, and the Green Bank, the project provides grid resiliency and micro-grid-ready clean energy, bringing cleantech innovation to our country’s most critical national security infrastructure.

Environmental Infrastructure

In 2021, the Green Bank’s model and charge was expanded beyond energy into environmental infrastructure, which includes climate adaptation and resiliency and sectors such as parks and recreation, waste and recycling, water, and land conservation. These are the first projects recognized under this new charge, and the Green Bank is proud to partner with these great community leaders and organizations.

Outstanding Project

Hartford ParkScore – Blue Hills Civic Association (BHCA) and Trust for Public Land (TPL)

In the summer of 2023, BHCA and TPL led the completion of a park assessment project for the City of Hartford, conducted by paid youth interns in BHCA’s Summer Youth Employment Program. The project adapted the ParkScore Index, a national comparison of the park systems across the 100 most populated cities, to Hartford by gathering key park metrics. A custom report and prioritization maps for acquisition and rehabilitation will be released in 2024.

Outstanding Project

Bridgeport Communities LEAP – Greater Bridgeport Community Enterprises

When the City of Bridgeport was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy for the Communities Local Energy Action Program (LEAP), the Bridgeport Regional Energy Partnership (BREP) coordinated with the program to start community-led clean energy planning. As part of BREP, Greater Bridgeport Community Enterprises has been tasked with convening, interpreting, researching, and documenting activities of the project team and community to identify the community’s opportunities to use clean energy technologies to address community needs.

Energy Storage Solutions

Launched in 2022 and co-administered by the Green Bank, Eversource, and UI, Energy Storage Solutions is a Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) program that incentivizes Eversource and UI customers to install batteries in their homes and businesses, helping customers across Connecticut increase their resilience when weather-related outages occur and providing benefits to the grid and all ratepayers. As the program continues to grow, the Green Bank recognizes contractors leading the way in the residential and commercial sectors.

Top Performers – Residential

  • Earthlight Technologies in Ellington

  • Green Power Energy in Durham

  • SAVKAT® in Bristol

Top Performers – Commercial

  • RWE Clean Energy in Danbury

  • CPower in Baltimore, Maryland

Home Solutions Awards

Smart-E Loan – Top Performers

For 2023, the Green Bank recognizes Smart-E Loan Top Performers based on the services they provide or their overall growth in the program over the year. These Top Performers helped more than 400 families across Connecticut make home energy improvements – allowing them to save money, reduce their carbon footprint, and live more comfortably in their homes. Since 2013, the Smart-E loan has allowed more than 7,500 families to save a projected $93 million in lifetime energy costs.

The 2023 Top Performers (in alphabetical order with their main office location)

HVAC

  • Absolute Air Services LLC (Portland)

  • Call The Bee (Burlington)

  • Glasco Heating & Air Conditioning Inc. (South Windsor)

  • Homestead Comfort (Ellington)

  • Nutmeg Mechanical Services, Inc. (Manchester)

  • Service Stars (Danbury)

Solar

  • Aegis Solar Energy (Branford)

  • Earthlight Technologies (Ellington)

  • EcoSmart Home Services (East Berlin)

  • Green Power Energy (Durham)

  • Premier Improvements LLC (West Hartford)

  • RWE Clean Energy (Danbury)

  • SAVKAT Inc. (Bristol)

Home Performance

  • Action Windows and Siding (West Hartford)

  • Dr. Energy Saver (Seymour)

Health and Safety

  • BioClean, LLC (Milford)

Accelerating Smart-E

  • Benvenuti Oil Company (Waterford)

  • East Coast Mechanical, Inc. (Cheshire)

  • Link Mechanical Services Inc. (New Britain)

  • Onofreo Home Comfort Systems LLC (Milford)

  • Total Mechanical Systems (Plainville)

More information and photos are at www.ctgreenbank.com/2023awards.

Photo: Chair’s and President’s Awards Recipient Lynn Stoddard of Sustainable CT (center) with Connecticut Green Bank Board Chair Lonnie Reed (left) and Connecticut Green Bank President and CEO Bryan Garcia (right).