City Rebate Program Saves Water, Reduces Bills for Housing Works

News Release

For Immediate Release
Dec. 19, 2025

City Rebate Program Saves Water, Reduces Bills for Housing Works

The City of Bend and Housing Works have partnered to increase water savings and reduce utility bills for the Housing Authority through a City rebate program that replaced 101 high-volume toilets with high-efficiency models in all 88 units at Summit Park Apartments in Bend. Housing Works' estimated annual savings is $10,600 total, or $105 per toilet.

Existing toilets were over 30 years old and using 3.5 gallons per flush. The replacement toilets are EPA WaterSense-certified and use 1.28 gallons per flush. The rebate offset the cost per toilet by $80. Housing Works' rebate equaled $8,080, about 34% of the retrofit project's costs.

"Based on the expected annual water and sewer savings, this project's return on investment was expedited to a little under 1.5 years with rebate funds," said Bend Water Conservation Program Manager Dan Denning.

Housing Works is the largest owner of affordable housing in the Central Oregon region, housing roughly 1 percent of the population across the organization's 1,400 homes and apartments. The water and cost savings from this partnership will help Housing Works provide additional resources for the community.

"Creating efficiency across our buildings makes sense in so many ways," said Lynne McConnell, Housing Works Executive Director. "Upgrading and improving the homes we own helps us meet our mission of fostering dignity through housing and helps the overall community through better water efficiency. Savings can be reinvested in the property through lower rents or improvements, and in the resident services we support on site. We appreciate the City's partnership and support."

"We value partnerships like this one with Housing Works and are so grateful to be able to help improve this property's sustainability and reduce ongoing operational costs through water savings," said Denning, Bend's Water Conservation Program Manager. "There's opportunity for an impressive return on investment for property owners who are interested in working with us."

Other City customers with multi-family buildings, multiplexes with five or more units and commercial properties are eligible for rebates on indoor and outdoor water-efficient devices and projects too. Visit Multi-Family and Commercial Rebates and WaterWise Communities for more information, or contact Bend's Water Conservation staff at 541-317-3000, ext. 2, or [email protected].

Each project receives a free preliminary evaluation with trained City of Bend staff who will help identify potential savings, plan out the project's phases and coordinate implementation.

"We realize no two projects are exactly alike," said Denning. "Our goal is to foster a successful venture that generates the most savings on each property."

Housing Works is the largest affordable housing provider in Central Oregon. The organization provides people with quality, safe, and affordable homes and services. Housing Works developments in Bend, Redmond, Prineville, Madras and Sisters have won awards for innovation, economic impact, design, and beautification. All new multiunit buildings achieve Earth Advantage Platinum rating. For more information, visit housing-works.org.

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