By Sean Maher
Contra Costa Timesmercurynews.com
Posted: 04/17/2012 03:47:11 PM PDT
April 18, 2012 9:31 PM GMTUpdated: 04/18/2012 02:31:12 PM PDT

PITTSBURG -- At least 20 low-income East Contra Costa youths will get city-funded training this summer in green construction and sustainable energy installation, fields often touted as the future of the skilled labor market.
The Pittsburg City Council this week approved continuing the Future Build program. It's an effort that began in 2011, when 20 low-income residents of Pittsburg, Bay Point and Antioch received similar training in a 13-week course paid for with funds from the county's Workforce Development Board.
Members of the class, all ages 18 to 24, were trained in a hands-on construction lab, as well as photovoltaics -- also called solar power -- according to a report by assistant city manager Garrett Evans.
The new program, funded by a $95,000 award from the WDB and about $58,000 being set aside by the Pittsburg Power Co., will extend the training to 16 weeks, which will allow participants to get "active participation in construction projects, specifically those intended to expand the quantity and quality of low-income housing in East County," Evans wrote.
The city is discussing projects with the county housing authority as well as Habitat for Humanity, he said.
Four months after last year's project completed, the city found that 45 percent of the graduates had jobs, and 17 percent of those jobs were related to the training the graduates had received.
Hoping to build those numbers, this year's project will include job development and support after graduation, Evans said.
The program will include four months of follow-up services to include career exploration, job coaching and referrals, and assistance finding further education and financial aid.
The new program is expected to begin in late May, but city staff will do at least four weeks of outreach and recruitment in the community before the classes begin, Evans wrote.

Future Build Program