10 Finalists Announced in Charlottesville Home Energy Makeover Contest

For Immediate Release: September 12, 2010

Contact: Cynthia Adams, Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP) – 434.825.0232

10 Finalists Announced in Charlottesville Home Energy Makeover Contest
LEAP Provides Free Home Energy Audits to Finalists Selected from Pool of 1,100

Charlottesville, VA – Ten residents from Charlottesville and Albemarle County are finalists in the Local Energy Alliance Program’s (LEAP) Home Energy Makeover Contest, and each will receive a free home energy performance assessment worth up to $600. More than 1,100 people entered the contest, and the finalists were announced today at Monticello Media’s Healthy Green Expo at the Omni. Two winners will be selected from the 10 finalists in the coming weeks. They will receive home energy improvements from local contractors worth up to $10,000.

The 10 finalists are:

City of Charlottesville
•    Larissa Carres of JPA Circle
•    Susan Kruse of Early Street
•    Melanie Miller of Locust Avenue
•    Daniel Ortiz of Altamont Circle
•    Jason Payne of Cherry Avenue

Albemarle County
•    Joan Baily of Durrette Road in Afton
•    Estelle Brooks of Wynridge Lane in Charlottesville
•    Earl Dudley of Chestnut Grove in Albemarle County
•    Chris Reid of Indian Laurel Road in Albemarle County
•    Danny van Clief of Oxford Road in Charlottesville

“We congratulate the 10 finalists and look forward to supporting their efforts to assess and improve their home’s energy efficiency,” said Cynthia Adams, Executive Director of LEAP. “We were thrilled that more than 1,100 people signed up for Home Energy Makeover Contest. It’s great to see such enthusiasm in the community for energy solutions that help homeowners save money and make their homes more comfortable.”

The Charlottesville Home Energy Makeover Contest was designed to help homeowners in Charlottesville and Albemarle County learn more about home energy efficiency and how they can save money and enhance the comfort and value of their homes. For more information please visit www.cvillesaves.org or www.leap-va.org.

A home performance assessment or “energy audit” includes diagnostic tests on the home’s energy efficiency, health and safety tests for leaks or backdrafting of gas appliances, and the identification of areas in need of improvement in the home.  Energy improvements can include air and duct sealing, adding insulation, and upgrading heating and cooling systems.  All work will be conducted by local contractors who are pre-qualified to participate in LEAP’s Home Performance with ENERGY STAR program.

Major sponsors for the Makeover Contest included the City of Charlottesville and County of Albemarle, C-ville Weekly, Dominion Virginia Power, Monticello Media, and NBC 29 News. Five entrants won random drawings throughout the contest sponsored by Blue Ridge EcoShop, Feast!, Mountain Lumber, Savvy Rest Organic Mattresses, and Whole Foods.