DATE: May 9, 2016
TO: Council Sustainability Committee
FROM: Director of Utilities and Environmental Services
SUBJECT
Title
East Bay SunShares
End
RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
That the Committee reviews and comments on this report and directs staff to participate in the East Bay SunShares program.
Body
BACKGROUND
In 2015, the cities of Walnut Creek, Fremont, Piedmont, and Lafayette participated in a program called East Bay SunShares - a group purchase program for solar photovoltaic systems. The three-month campaign resulted in more than 600 residents signing up to learn more about residential solar; and contracts providing over 850 kW of new residential solar power were signed.
DISCUSSION
For 2016, East Bay SunShares will be expanded to include electric vehicles (EVs) in addition to solar photovoltaic systems. Staff is considering participating in this regional program as it would help Hayward residents investigate and purchase EVs and solar systems, to offset grid energy use and to reduce vehicle emissions. The City would partner with multiple East Bay entities to create a larger market for bulk purchasing. All of these entities will market the program to their constituents and employees. A joint Request for Proposals will be issued, and a contractor will be selected from the bids that meet the requirements of the RFP. The goal is to spur lower pricing through bulk purchasing. The more participants who sign up, the lower the pricing will be. Currently, the cities of Fremont, Berkeley, and Oakland have expressed interest.
The 2016 East Bay SunShares program will be administered by the Business Council on Climate Change (BC3). As noted in Attachment I, staff's role would be to assist BC3 with coordinating public workshops and contacting potential participants via email, newsletters, intranet sites, and posters. In early June, after the participating cities are confirmed, BC3 will issue a requ...
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