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An informational report provided to the Menlo Park City Council for its Feb. 25 meeting showed that fewer people are taking advantage of a community electrification program funded by the California Energy Commission after the program’s launch in August 2024. The city is now trying to find ways to expand the program and increase uptake before its grant money expires.
The city received the first half of a $4.5 million state grant in September 2023, and is required to spend the first half before it can receive the second half of the funding. The grant money expires in June 2026. The city received the grant from the California Energy Commission after Menlo Spark, a local nonprofit that advances sustainability issues, sought funds from the office of state Sen. Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, for electrification upgrades benefiting Belle Haven residences.
In April 2024, the Menlo Park City Council greenlit an electrification program, in partnership with Peninsula Clean Energy. The city is paying PCE $2,210,000 to administer the electrification program; the city retained the remaining $40,000 for program marketing and administration. The program provides electric heat pumps, water heaters, dryers and induction cooktops as well as compatible cookware to income-qualified homeowners in the Belle Haven neighborhood. The program also provides electrical system remediation and minor energy efficiency and weatherization improvements for program participants.
Since the program officially launched in late August 2024, 41 homes were assessed for eligibility, 11 homeowners have signed agreements to participate in the program and two installations are underway. According to the informational report given to the council, city staff have observed a 50% decrease in program applicants in the past two months compared to November 2024. Additionally, seven homeowners canceled their assessments since the program was launched without requesting to reschedule.
Sustainability Manager Rachael Londer told the Environmental Quality Commission at a meeting on Feb. 19 that the city and PCE so far have only spent money on program administration and marketing. The city expects electrification will cost about $30,000-40,000 per home. Given the $4.5 million available to the city, staff is brainstorming ways to spend the rest of the money before funds expire.
At the Feb. 19 meeting, Londer told the commission that city staff is considering new project ideas to increase the number of residents who are eligible to receive funding for electrification. City staff is also working to increase outreach on the current program to increase uptake from Belle Haven residents.
Londer said that city staff is also considering increasing the income eligibility requirements for the program from 80% of the area median income to 120% and expanding the program to other areas of the city. She also said that the city could consider additional programs, such as offering a matching rebate for heat pumps and water heaters or providing climate resiliency kits to income-qualified residents.
The city is also considering using some of the funds to electrify certain city-owned facilities, such as the Belle Haven Child Development Center, Arillaga Recreation Center or the Burgess Pool campus. Londer said that the Burgess Pool campus is the largest natural gas user across the city’s portfolio of properties.
Londer said that there aren’t many parameters on what the grant funds can be used for, as long as they go toward community electrification before June 2026.
“The program as we have built it is for income-eligible Belle Haven residents, but the program as the state defined it is a community-wide electrification project,” said Londer. “We took our priorities as a city on environmental justice and brought this program to Belle Haven, but as far as spending the money, we have full flexibility on what we can do.”
Londer said that based on how quickly the state deadline for spending is approaching, the city should prioritize implementing programs that can be completed quickly. Several commissioners said that the city should instead prioritize the impact of a program when considering how to spend the money.
“I am very concerned about our current administration’s pivot away from addressing climate change, and we should be thinking hard and fast about every dollar spent on how much impact it’s going to have on greenhouse gas, independent of speed or politics,” said Commissioner Brian Kissel. “But I understand the speed component just from the standpoint of losing the funds.”
Commissioners also said that they favored expanding and adding programs that benefited low-income residents of Menlo Park, especially those in the Belle Haven neighborhood, as that was the original intent for the grant funds.
Why the slow uptake?
Environmental Quality Commissioners questioned why Belle Haven residents have not been participating in the program at the rate that was expected.
Londer told commissioners that many people have expressed interest in the electrification program, but as Belle Haven has a high proportion of renters living in the neighborhood, many who are interested do not qualify.
“I think that’s one of the biggest barriers, but we haven’t yet been able to convince PCE to open up their program to renters, and we don’t have the bandwidth to (start) a new program for renters,” said Londer. “I think it’s very tricky for us to find who the homeowners are at 80% area median income.”
Londer also mentioned that one of the requirements for the program is that participants must continue to live in their homes for five years following the electrification upgrades to prevent home flipping. Commissioners said that this might also discourage people from taking part in the program. Londer and commissioners also mentioned that some residents have been hesitant about electrification for fear of losing heating or cooking ability during a power outage.
Londer said that city staff will return to the City Council with official recommendations for how to spend the excess grant funds by the deadline at the council’s April meeting.
Council member Jeff Schmidt, a former member of the Environmental Quality Commission, commented at the Feb. 19 commission meeting meeting and told city staff that when this item comes before the city council, members will need to emphasize quick action.
“There’s a lot of big stuff coming to the city in this critical time period around downtown, big developments, RV parking,” said Schmidt. “I would say don’t be fearful about lighting a fire and saying, ‘This is really urgent because we’re going to lose the money.’”
Menlo Park city staff will continue to conduct outreach about the electrification program in the meantime to try to increase uptake of the program.
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$2 m
2 instalations
Hmm
How about give that money back to the tax payers and we can buy our own appliances.