Building more with less (energy use, that is)

Looking back on four decades of public service, Richard Santangelo never imagined that a career focused on property management would lead him to running an energy efficiency campaign for the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD. Since 2002 Santangelo has coordinated installations of energy efficient equipment in thousands of public housing units nationwide.

The program, known as Energy Performance Contracting (EPC), is an innovative financing technique that uses savings from reduced energy consumption to repay the cost of installing energy conservation measures.

The EPC campaign has brought energy-efficient windows and doors, new heating systems and energy-efficient exterior lighting to public housing residents in an effort to reduce energy costs.

"Richard made energy savings essential to housing authorities," said Pat Arnaudo, a former supervisor at HUD.

Since he took over the energy program, more than $729 million has been invested in energy conservation efforts for public housing . At the same time, housing authorities nationwide have a combined guaranteed investment savings of $118 million annually.

In addition to the collective efforts by public housing authorities to save energy, Santangelo focused on individual contributions to energy conservation. "You don't have to do extraordinary efforts to save energy," said Santangelo." Our campaign is about awareness of what you can do in your everyday life."

The Buffalo Municipal Housing Authority benefited from Santangelo's work by entering into an energy performance contract with Siemens Building Technologies, Inc., that is designed to save the authority up to $7 million over a 12-year period. The authority installed new natural gas boilers in its 656-unit development and has undertaken energy upgrades at another housing facility.

The Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA) used the program to rehabilitate the water, sewer, heating, and cooling systems of 40 high-rise developments. During the first 18 months of the program, the MPHA saved more than $1 million and anticipates saving approximately $3 million over the 10-year program period. In 2009, there were over 200 such programs at various other public housing authorities. Santangelo is credited with making EPC more effective than it had been in the past.

"Richard turned it around. He has been an extraordinary leader and doer since he took over the energy efficiency program" said Steve Morgan, president of Clean Energy Solutions. "He became HUD's chief promoter of energy efficiency."

Santangelo, who is leaving federal service at the end of the month after 42 years, noticed the potential to combine energy conservation and savings with public housing before 1970, when conservation was not a priority.

A majority of his efforts have focused on raising awareness among housing authorities aware of the advantages of the program. Santangelo worked with housing authorities to measure their energy costs, calculate potential savings and then begin achieving conservation results. He has also provided training to help with financing and implementation of the program.

Under the program, housing authorities have used some of the energy savings to increase resident services and improve living conditions. Some authorities have used their savings to expand access to broadband Internet, initiate job training programs and develop youth programming in partnership with local non-profits.

Currently, public housing authorities invest $3 to $4 million. However, with New York City committing up to $1 billion during the next 20 years, and Boston committing $63 million, the interest in the program is spreading.

"The energy programs have been elevated to the point where they are becoming mainstream," said Santangelo.

This article was jointly prepared by the Partnership for Public Service, a group seeking to enhance the performance of the federal government, and washingtonpost.com. Visit www.ourpublicservice.org for more about the organization's work and go to www.servicetoamericamedals.org to nominate a federal employee for a Service to America Medal.