Can Albany take an entire city block off natural gas?
A $200,000 federal grant is helping Albany lay the groundwork for a potentially groundbreaking project.
Albany's ambitious plan to electrify an entire city block is moving forward, with building assessments underway and an outreach event for property owners in November.
The project, in development since 2020, aims to decommission the block's gas pipeline and transition every building on it from natural gas to electricity.
City staff will present an update on the project to the Climate Action Committee at its 7 p.m. meeting Wednesday, Oct. 21.
The city is pursuing the pilot with a $200,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy awarded in October 2023.
Three blocks were initially considered. The city ultimately narrowed the focus to one block based on community responses, according to the staff report.
For now at least, the location is being withheld for privacy reasons, staff said Wednesday.
Since October 2024, the city has worked with consultants Environmental Justice Solutions and the Association for Energy Affordability on outreach and building assessments for residents and property owners.
Three of the 14 buildings on the block have already been assessed.
The assessments examine which appliances need to be replaced, what installation work would be required, whether buildings have sufficient electrical capacity, and opportunities for solar installations and building envelope upgrades. Each assessment includes cost estimates for each component.
The pilot could receive additional funding through California's Senate Bill 1221, enacted in 2024, which established a voluntary program for gas utilities to decommission gas pipelines in selected areas and redirect avoided pipeline replacement costs toward building electrification.
The precise costs and potential savings for Albany's project are still being determined. Under the program, utility spending on electrification must not exceed the savings from avoided pipeline replacement.
Staff wrote that Albany's project "is an excellent candidate for the program and has a good chance of being selected," but added that PG&E had not yet finalized its site selection process.
The project team is planning a private "block party" in early November to encourage more property owners to sign up for electrification assessments and complete the project interest forms required by the state.
The California Public Utilities Commission has set an April 1, 2027, deadline for utilities to propose project sites for approval.
PG&E is expected to begin selecting those sites early next year. By then, Albany hopes to have signed interest forms from at least 67% of property owners on the selected block along with completed assessments of all 14 buildings.
If selected, the project could use funding that otherwise would have gone toward gas pipeline replacement to help cover the cost of electrifying buildings on the block, according to staff.
The staff report is an informational item. No action is being requested from the Climate Action Committee.
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