Babylon Awarded $235K From U.S. Department Of Energy

BABYLON, NY — The Town of Babylon received a $235,330 Bridge the Gap grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to fund its Green Homes program, which helps homeowners make energy efficiency improvements at no upfront cost.

Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer made announcement at the town's Green Horizons Sustainability Fair in Lindenhurst in late January, where officials celebrated the completion of the program's 2,000th energy retrofit project.

The Green Homes program started in 2008 "to promote energy efficiency and sustainability" by helping homeowners with affordable air-source heat pumps and weatherization projects. The grant provides funding for retrofits in both disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged communities, aligning with state and federal goals to ensure equitable access to renewable energy solutions, officials said.

At the fair, Schaffer also highlighted the program's future plans, which include "leveraging increased town-allocated funding in 2025 to expand outreach and educational efforts to accelerate the transition to clean energy for more homeowners, particularly those with low to moderate income."

According to the town, homeowners in the Town of Babylon who utilized the Green Homes program have saved around $1,084 annually or about 20 to 30 percent off of their energy bills.

The sustainability also offered attendees information about electric vehicles, cold climate air-source heat pumps, nutritious meal-prep, exercise routines and local, state and federal incentives.