BOULDER, Colo.—Hundreds of Boulder County residents are expected to get the go-ahead this week to start on energy-improvement projects on their homes with bonds issued by the county.
The projects will be part of the voter-approved ClimateSmart program, which allows Boulder County to issue bonds to finance the loans for home improvements. Those can include the installation of solar panels or putting up storm windows on their homes.
The loans are paid through property taxes, so the debt will stay with whoever owns the house.
Voters authorized Boulder County in November to sell up to $40 million in bonds for the projects. Commissioners decided to allocate $28 million from the bonds for residential projects, and $12 million for commercial projects.
Longmont resident Teresa Foster is one of the homeowners who applied for the program and will be getting a $23,000 loan. She plans to have a 2.5-kilowatt solar system installed on her home.
Foster admits she was nervous about borrowing the money.
“To be honest, it was a little scary,” she said.
However, she points out that her loan will be amortized over 15 years.
About $6.6 million in loans are expected to be issued this week, after a bond closing Thursday morning.
The county will then send “notices to proceed” to homeowners.
In Boulder, 168 ClimateSmart projects are planned, totaling almost $2.9 million in loans. Longmont residents are planning 65 projects for almost $895,700.
The county will accept more loan applications for the ClimateSmart program this fall, including loans for commercial properties.
———
Information from: Daily Times-Call,
