BRIER HILL ANNEX

BRIER HILL ANNEX

Here are some facts about the $10 million renovation designed to turn the Youngstown Metropolitan Housing Authority’s 1962-vintage Brier Hill Annex into a green, energy-efficient 76-apartment community:

The effort was funded by a competitive federal stimulus grant awarded in 2009.

YMHA entered into a project labor agreement with the Building Trades Council of the Mahoning Valley to ensure that the project employed local residents affected by the recession.

The authority documented to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that the renovation created 18 jobs and retained 27 others.

The renovation was designed by Karl R. Rohrer Associates, architects and engineers, of Akron; VendRick Construction Inc. of Brookfield was the general contractor.

The complex consists of two one-bedroom apartments, six handicapped-accessible and six standard two-bedroom apartments, 50 three-bedroom apartments and 12 four-bedroom apartments.

All apartments received new wall and attic insulation and new windows and doors.

Solar panels on each rooftop can provide 25 percent of the development’s electrical needs.

These electrical savings allowed energy-efficient central air conditioning to be installed in every apartment without increasing electrical consumption.

Most interior lighting fixtures have motion sensor switches that shut the lights off after three minutes of inactivity, unless this feature is overridden by someone who needs to keep the light on.

Permeable parking lot and sidewalk paving allows storm-water retention in an under-drain system, thereby reducing the rainwater runoff rate.

Counter tops are made from recycled-content Formica.

Source: Youngstown Metropolitan Housing Authority