City of Menlo Park’s Clean Energy Infrastructure

The Challenge

Improve quality of life for residents and align with the city's 2030 Climate Action Plan

Project Overview

Situated in a historically underserved neighborhood, Menlo Park’s new community center is under construction with sustainability in mind—including the goal of making the campus fossil fuel-free. Since the facility will be a designated Red Cross shelter during grid outages, the city wanted to build a microgrid with backup power for the site.

Key Benefits

Energy

• Improved resiliency

Savings

• $6.9 million over 30 years

Community

• New center for the community and emergency response

Energy Assessment and Strategy

OPTERRA won the competitive RFP process to design, build, and manage the microgrid. The infrastructure includes a solar PV and battery energy storage system that can power the entire center for up to 24 hours, or longer if non-essential systems are turned off.

Implementation and Funding

OPTERRA helped the city secure several grants and incentives to fund the project. Once
complete, the microgrid is expected to save the city $6.9 million over 30 years.