Local nonprofit says Duke Energy won’t turn on the power to low-cost apartments
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Duke Energy refuses power to Chapel Hill affordable housing due to single meter
- EMPOWERment faces $86,000 in rewiring costs and possible 6-month move-in delay
- Ten families remain unhoused while solar-equipped building sits 85% complete
Duke Energy’s delay in turning on the lights at a new affordable apartment building in Chapel Hill is running up a local nonprofit’s bill, while leaving some prospective tenants on the verge of homelessness, according to a recent filing.
EMPOWERment Inc., an Orange County nonprofit housing provider, and the Southern Environmental Law Center filed a complaint June 6 asking the N.C. Utilities Commission for a ruling and an immediate order requiring Duke Energy to turn on the electricity to the P.E.A.C.H. Apartments building at 107 Johnson St.
The delay is putting the building at risk of mold and mildew damage, because the heating, air and ventilation systems need permanent power. It’s also increasing EMPOWERment’s costs to maintain the building, SELC senior attorney Nicholas Jimenez said.
It’s putting a burden on potential tenants, too, some of whom are on the verge of homelessness until they can move in, he added. There are 20 families and individuals waiting to hear if they will get one of the 10 apartments, the filing says. The original move-in date was May 1.
The filing claims Duke Energy Progress won’t turn on the power because contractors installed a single electric meter for the building, which has rooftop solar panels to reduce energy consumption and lower costs. State law allows a single meter with Utilities Commission approval, when it serves a central heating, air or hot water system, and uses solar to conserve more energy.
State law also allows master meters when a landlord includes utilities in the tenant’s rent.
The filing asks the Utilities Commission to order Duke Energy to turn on the power by June 23.
“This came about because people who are already doing some of the most valuable community-building work out there found a way to use solar energy to lower the cost of living for our low-income neighbors,” Jimenez said.
Duke Energy can’t address specific details about a customer’s account, spokesman Jeff Brooks said.
But “Duke Energy service regulations, in compliance with North Carolina law, require residential units to have individual meters, not one master meter covering the entire building,” he said in an email. “These guidelines are in place to promote consistency in the quality and reliability of service to all customers.”
Brooks did not respond to a question about why state law does not apply to the P.E.A.C.H. Apartments.
On Thursday, the Utilities Commission directed Duke Energy to provide electricity to the building or answer EMPOWERment’s complaint within 10 days. The notice also encouraged Duke Energy and EMPOWERment to file a recommendation together to separately within five days for how to move forward.
Duke decision followed months of work
EMPOWERment broke ground on the project in late 2023, and its contractors submitted plans for a single meter to Duke Energy in July 2024, according to the filing.
Duke Energy ran underground service for the single meter in October 2024, but in February, the utility company told EMPOWERment that the building needed 10 individual meters for the apartments because of the rooftop solar system.
The only other option is to rewire the building for 10 meters, which means months of delay for tenants and higher construction costs for EMPOWERment, the nonprofit’s executive director, Delores Bailey, said in a news release.
Duke Energy has refused to compromise by allowing EMPOWERment to use the single meter on an interim basis while raising money to install individual meters, the filing says. The cost to rewire the building is estimated at $86,000, and could include a four- to six-month delay in getting materials, it says.
“EMPOWERment added rooftop solar for its energy efficiency, health and environmental benefits, and lower costs for tenants,” Bailey said. “We’ve tried to resolve this conflict, but we have no choice other than file this complaint so our tenants can have affordable housing. Our building is at risk, and 10 families in our community are struggling with housing when they shouldn’t have to be.”
The $3.5 million Pine Knoll EMPOWERment Affordable Community Housing (P.E.A.C.H.) building meets the Americans with Disabilities Act and is located in the historically African-American neighborhood of Pine Knoll, originally created to serve UNC and UNC Hospitals employees.
EMPOWERment was founded in 1996 and now manages 63 affordable housing units in Orange County.
P.E.A.C.H. Apartments has two studio units, four one-bedroom units, three two-bedroom units, and one three-bedroom unit, ranging in size from 700 to 1,200 square feet, Bailey said. It will serve residents earning up to 30% of the area median income — $11 to $16 an hour — many of whom are single parents and some who are “couch surfing” with family or friends, she said.
A ribbon-cutting was held in April, and the development is now 85% complete, EMPOWERment officials said. The remaining work, which will require electricity, could take three to four weeks, the filing says.
EMPOWERment has been a Duke customer in good standing for over 25 years, it notes. The single meter could increase the amount of solar power supporting the building and tenants by as much as 40%, according to SolarEquity, a UNC student-run nonprofit.
“We urge the North Carolina Utilities Commission to do what’s right: turn on the power, let these families come home, and support affordable, sustainable housing in our state,” said Leah Adeniji, deputy director of EMPOWERment Inc.
This story was originally published June 12, 2025 at 1:46 PM with the headline "Local nonprofit says Duke Energy won’t turn on the power to low-cost apartments."
