Creating Resilient Communities
Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE) is committed to providing our customers with clean, affordable and reliable electricity.
Community Resilience Grant Programs
The SVCE Community Resilience Program is investing more than $5 million to help our region reduce the impacts of power outages from events such as earthquakes, PG&E Public Safety Power Shutoffs, storms, floods, and wildfires while supporting decarbonization and local job creation.
The program provides SVCE’s 13 member agencies with grant funds to identify, prioritize, and implement resilient energy strategies. The program has funded battery backup systems on community buildings, including a library, fire station, City Hall, and senior center; other projects include solar-powered EV chargers.
Explore the projects below – more projects are coming soon.
Milpitas
The City of Milpitas used its $700,000 grant to install a 75.6 kilowatt (kW) solar array and a 125 kW battery. In the case of a power outage or other emergency, Milpitas residents can count on the senior center and community center to be powered and up and running, providing conditioned shelter and a kitchen. Plus, first responders and city employees can use the center as a charging station to power necessary electronics.
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After receiving the funds in 2022, former Mayor Rich Tran shared, “I am very grateful to SVCE for making the City’s journey towards sustainability, environmental health and emergency resilience a reality. The grant award reinforces our Smart City Infrastructure Program, which is expected to save Milpitas over $1.5 million in energy and water costs per year for a total savings of more than $30 million over the program’s lifetime. I look forward to our continued partnership and success for many years to come.”
Saratoga
The City of Saratoga used it $139,000 grant to install backup battery systems at 14 traffic light intersections to increase traffic safety. If a power outage occurs, the backup batteries will switch on to power traffic lights and allow the city to maintain access to the signals, allowing them to maximize the safest and most effective flow of traffic if an evacuation is needed.
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“Many of our busiest signalized intersections are within or adjacent to high fire hazard areas and have lost power during planned outages in recent years, causing delays and confusion. We quickly realized that the issues we encountered during a planned outage would be drastically exacerbated during an emergency,” said Tina Walia, City of Saratoga councilmember and SVCE Vice Chair. “I am extremely grateful to SVCE for helping the City of Saratoga improve community resiliency by providing support for the traffic signal backup battery project and ensuring our traffic signals stay on.”
Sunnyvale
The City of Sunnyvale used the $1M grant from SVCE to install solar and battery storage at their City Hall. The newly-constructed building is the first LEED Platinum certified and Net Zero Energy city hall in the country and has 1,653 photovoltaic (PV) solar panels that generate 1,099,000 kWh of power annually – enough to power about 103 homes for a year. The PV panels are paired with a 350 kWh battery energy storage system, adding energy resilience to the building. The solar system will produce power during the day, and in the event of an outage, the clean electricity stored in the batteries will be used to power critical building operations.
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“Sunnyvale’s new City Hall is an icon for sustainability and a true symbol for our city as the Heart of Silicon Valley. Our council and community set a bold vision to serve, engage and inspire with this building, and we’ve achieved it in a spectacular way,” said Larry Klein in 2023, Mayor of Sunnyvale.
More projects coming soon
Los Gatos
Battery installation at the Public Library
Los Altos Hills
Battery installation at Town Hall
Morgan Hill
Battery installation at the Recreation Center
Mountain View
Battery installation at the Community Center
Unincorporated Santa Clara County
Solar and battery installation at South County Fire Station
Campbell, Cupertino, Gilroy, Los Altos and Monte Sereno
Projects in planning process.
Resilient Site Selection Tool
To further support member agencies, SVCE developed the Resilient Site Selection Tool. This online platform can complete a preliminary assessment of member agencies’ critical community sites and quickly identify potential energy resilience projects.
SVCE member agencies interested in accessing the Tool should contact Senior Programs Specialist Jessica Cornejo, jessica.cornejo@svcleanenergy.org.
Resilience Framework – Coming Soon
To guide the Community Resilience Program and other resilience projects, SVCE developed the Community Energy Resilience Framework. The Framework is designed to help SVCE communities prioritize resilience project implementation and reduce the impacts of grid disruptions. It articulates a shared vision for community energy resilience: the ability of a community to prepare for, adapt to, withstand and recover from power disruptions due to anticipated hazards.
