My ShoreBank’s Thanksgivings
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009
I believe, in the words of W.J. Cameron, that “Thanksgiving . . . is a word of action.” It is not just a moment. So as we look back on 2009, one of the most economically difficult years in our nation’s history, I am thankful for many things that offer real hope for the future. I give thanksgiving for:
Social Media’s growing impact
Its role as a catalyst for creating positive social and environmental change continues to grow larger. For example, this year’s Summer of Social Good exhibited the potential for what can be accomplished when social media is implemented to raise funds for nonprofit organizations. And President Obama’s administration and numerous organizations continue to demonstrate the impact upon an issue or a cause that can stem from the buzz created by social media.
The Chicago Climate Action Plan
The City’s plan to retrofit 400,000 units of housing by 2020 to mitigate 1.5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide is already off to a great start. Administrators claim to have exceeded the quantity of residential retrofits they wanted to complete this year while planting 7 million square-feet of green roofs. Plus, additional bike lanes and new storage racks across the city to accommodate parking 12,000 bicycles will help reduce monthly expenses, congestion, and greenhouse gas emissions, all of which will make Chicago a healthier place and improve the quality of life for everyone.
Extending the First-Time Home Buyers Credit
The tax credit that has already helped nearly 1.5 million Americans to buy a home has been extended to June 2010. I am confident it will continue to boost home sales and fuel the consumer spending that will help stabilize our communities and get the economy moving faster.
The Home Affordability and Modification Program
This economic crisis is not limited to “a bunch of irresponsible people who bought or sold more home than they could afford.” So we are proud participants in the Administration’s Home Affordability and Modification Program. We have completed more than 50 successful modifications and, in addition to our Rescue Loan Program, we are doing everything we can do to help homeowners to save their homes.
The new SBK.com Website
Developing a fresh new look and new features for our website provides more people with greater access to the resources and services that will make life’s possibilities all possible.
And most of all – our customers:
We are grateful for all of our customers who support our commitment to providing the services and products that create new opportunities to build strong, sustainable communities and reinvigorate peoples’ lives. We are also so proud of our customers, like Indie Energy, who recently received a $2.42 million grant from the U.S. Dept. of Energy to further develop geothermal technologies, for demonstrating the alternative energy industry’s potential to create good paying jobs while helping its customers to consume less energy and reduce their carbon footprint.
We are a “different” bank – and you are a special customer. Thank you for giving us so much to be thankful for in 2009.
Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at ShoreBank!
Interestingly, while the plan offers a great deal of detail on many facets, nowhere does it quantify the expected costs and capital needs for meeting the objectives. Indeed, the capital needs are likely significant. While the exact figures are difficult to calculate since each building will have a different level of capital investment, assuming $7,000 per unit of housing (the estimate used for weatherization costs in the stimulus bill), the housing portion comes to $2.8 billion, and this doesn’t even include the additional costs of more expensive items, such as windows, let alone, higher cost technologies, including geothermal, solar thermal or photovoltaic systems. More likely, given the costs of these items, the capital needs, just for the housing portion (and not including the costs to retrofit the 23,000 commercial buildings), exceeds $4-5 billion.
Take housing, for example. Buildings overall are the key issue for Chicago; 70% of emissions come from this sector. This is often a surprise for people because so often we focus only on the emissions associated with transportation. (Transportation is also huge, but only 21%.) Within buildings, you have the housing sector. The city has actually documented retrofits to over 6,000 units of residential housing that have been completed in the past year. Completed! These units are seeing double-digit reductions in energy use – preventing emissions and saving money.
