Sammamish reports initial takeup from Eastside 'Solarize' program; installations ongoing

Sammamish Sustainability Commission staff presented early results from an Eastside “Solarize” campaign on Sept. 11, reporting that the program generated 72 leads from Sammamish residents and six completed solar installations in the city as of the August report. The Eastside-wide program, run with nonprofit Olympia Community Solar and local installers, launched March 6 and ran through a July 4 enrollment deadline that qualified participants for special pricing and follow-up support.

The presentation said the Solarize effort covered Sammamish and other Eastside cities and that the regional partners reported 44 signed contracts across the participating jurisdictions as of the report. Swan, a city staff member who presented the data, said, “this was Sammamish's first time doing any kind of program like this and aligns really well with our climate action plan, some of our clean energy goals.” Swan added that many installers are booked through the year and that participation numbers were expected to grow as installations finish.

Commissioners and staff discussed how leads converted to contracts and why some participants declined: poor roof exposure, financial cost, and homeowner unresponsiveness were most common, the presentation said. Swan also reported installers and participants showed interest in battery storage: “almost half of folks who were installing solar panels were also looking into battery storage,” a metric the presenter emphasized as relevant for resilience planning. Staff noted the program did not provide battery-specific incentives but could explore that in future iterations.

Staff also emphasized outreach lessons: mailed newsletters and in-person workshops drove much of the initial interest, and EnergySmart Eastside and Olympia Community Solar provided technical and enrollment support. Swan told commissioners the nonprofit partner handled enrollment, contractor vetting and participant follow-through; the city did not expend its own operating budget for the Sammamish portion of this program. Swan said staff will continue follow-up with the nonprofit, expect a fuller data set in January, and consider program participation next year depending on partner capacity.

Commissioners asked whether the city could run the program independently; staff said the city lacks technical capacity and that Olympia Community Solar was one of the few organizations able to operate at the required scale. Commissioners suggested collecting resident testimonials and highlighted cross-promotion opportunities with heat-pump and electrification outreach.

Staff did not propose or take a formal vote on program continuation that night but said they would present a summary to city council at an upcoming meeting and would coordinate with Eastside partners about next steps.