The morning of Tuesday, July 18, 2008, a celebration took place on 530 Elm in our beautiful city. Long Beach residents, our Mayor, city council members and community leaders gathered to celebrate the grand opening of a building that would provide a “home” for mentally ill- homeless people and a “home” for those in need of an affordable place to live. Well, the apartment complex is full to capacity and we have another reason to celebrate 530 Elm!!!
Here we are a little over a month later and Clifford Beers Housing announced at its board meeting last week the building on 530 Elm is a recipient of solar panels. The panels were made possible from a partnership between the Enterprise Foundation and the BP Solar Neighbors Program. 530 Elm will be an energy efficient building with solar panels on its roof and by default educate its residents on the importance of energy conservation and renewable energy.
The BP Solar Neighbors Program is a community program whereby celebrities enjoy and help bring attention to the benefits of solar power, and partnership with BP, Enterprise Foundation and the Environmental Media Association (EMA). These organizations help low income families use solar power to reduce their energy bills and in my opinion bring real consciousness to the importance of sustainable living. After speaking with Patricia Mejia, Program Officer for Enterprise Community Foundation, I learned that the Enterprise Foundation has begun to target beyond South Central Los Angeles to include the Carson and City of Long Beach areas with solar panels. The Foundation’s goal is to provide solar panels for eligible single family homes and multi-family homes (apartment buildings). The way, I understood the program works is for every celebrity that purchases panels from BP Solar a low income family home or apartment complex may be eligible to receive panels from BP Solar. It is my understanding that actor Edward Norton has taken this project and made it his priority, especially for Southern California.
The building on Elm Street is one step toward building a sustainable city. On August 12, 2008, Councilwomen, Suja Lowenthal and Gerrie Shipske presented a Solar and Renewable Energy Policy to the council reflective of the work the Solar Task Force conducted. The Solar Task Force met to establish the groundwork of a comprehensive solar and renewable energy policy for the City of Long Beach. The policy was referred to the Sustainable City Commission. While the commission reviews the policy, it is important to highlight a couple of important policy objectives.
One of the policy objectives was to have 50% of the city’s energy come from renewable sources with at least 30% from locally produced renewable sources by 2020. I’m not sure where we are now as a city, which indicates to me that I have to do more research; however, it’s important for me to share that Clifford Beers Housing is a non profit organization that is demonstrating its commitment to work toward the objectives of the policy to make the city of Long Beach more sustainable. In my opinion, having local non-profit organizations take the initiative to contribute toward a more sustainable city is admirable and should be applauded.
I asked Patty Mejia from the Enterprise Foundation how can Long Beach residents learn about this program and find out if they are an eligible candidate for solar panels. She sent me pictures and documentation regarding the program. After visiting their website, it was amazing to see all the Enterprise Community Partners do for not only Southern California, but the entire nation.
Enterprise Foundation is a non-profit organization committed to helping rebuild communities and helping low-income families find affordable housing, selects the families to receive free solar from among the families they work with in Southern California.
Thank you for creating environmental consciousness among all communities!!!
To learn more about the Enterprise Foundation, click here.