UNA HABITAT CHAPTER BREAKS GROUND ON SOLAR-POWERED HOME MAY 17

FLORENCE, Ala. – After more than six months of groundwork, the real work is just beginning for the University of North Alabama’s Habitat for Humanity chapter. The group will break ground on a solar-powered home May 17. A ceremony is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. that day at the building site, 830 Carter Drive in Tuscumbia.

The idea for the solar-powered home was born when a group of UNA Habitat students, wanting to build an environmentally friendly house, applied for a grant from the Alabama Department of Economics and Commerce. The department’s Division of Weatherization and Technology awarded them $26,342 for the project.

The project has also received a $20,000 gift from TVA. TVA employees and retirees also plan to be among the volunteers working on the project.

The home solar-powered home will be served by Sheffield Utilities, which will enable the homeowners to sell back any unused energy. The students will monitor the home’s energy consumption for the first year in agreement with ADECA.

“Our goal is to benefit people in need with decent, affordable housing, but we also want to benefit the environment by leaving as small of an environmental footprint as possible, said Sabrina Balch, a UNA senior who has volunteered with Habitat for six years.

The home is being designed by architecture students of Auburn University and will be built through Shoals Habitat for Humanity.

In addition to solar panels, the home will include all Energy Star appliances, reflective metal roofing, structurally insulated panels and other environmentally friendly materials.

-UNA-