The Foundation for Senior Living (FSL) Real Estate Services recently received a loan from the City of Phoenix’s HOME Investment Partnerships Program for the installation of a solar photovoltaic (PV) Tesla battery storage system. The addition of this lithium-ion battery storage system allows FSL to store excess energy generated by the solar panels during the day and tap into that energy in the evening, long after the sun has set. The battery storage also serves a much larger community interest by reducing peak demand on the power grid.
The equipment was installed at 29 Palms, a 21-unit multigenerational apartment complex developed in Phoenix by FSL in partnership with First Place®AZ. Ten of the units are sublet to students of the First Place Transition Academy, a beta site operated by the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center (SARRC). The Transition Academy is a two-year, tuition-based residential training program for adults with autism and other neuro-diversities that focuses on independent living skills, career readiness and interpersonal relations.
Under the HOME Program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, allocates federal funds to state and local governments—like the City of Phoenix—to provide affordable housing to low-income and very low-income families. Savings on utility bills at 29 Palms will be used to expand the mission of the beta-site property, including resident services, education and training programs, as innovative, new technologies become available to meet the changing needs of residents.