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City updates rebate program website, partners with Friends of the Verde for larger grant cycles
Summary
Prescott staff unveiled a redesigned, city-hosted rebate application, data cleanup of historical entries, and a partnership with Friends of the Verde offering grant cycles (homeowners up to $5,000; businesses up to $10,000) to stack with city rebates. Staff plans to publish cleaned 2025 rebate-savings data in October.
City staff presented an update Sept. 2 on a redesign of Prescott’s water conservation rebate program, including a new city-hosted online application, data cleanup and a grant partnership with Friends of the Verde.
Tracy (last name not stated), the staff lead on water conservation, said the goals were to reduce barriers for applicants, save administrative time and improve the accuracy of rebate savings data used in long-term planning. Staff moved the application from a third-party host into the city’s own systems to reduce annual third-party hosting costs (staff said the previous hosting cost was over $10,000 per year) and to allow better integration with GIS and administrative dashboards.
Key program changes and details: - New web link: prescottwater.com/rebates (city-hosted application and updated guidance documents). - Historical data cleanup: staff is cleaning approximately 4,400 historical rebate application records so the program can report consistent water-savings numbers and participation metrics. Staff reported they will refresh the dataset and upload new savings numbers in October and that 2025 marks a milestone year for reporting historical program outcomes. - Friends of the Verde partnership: the nonprofit offers grant cycles that can be stacked with city rebates. Staff said homeowners can receive up to $5,000 per cycle from Friends of the Verde and businesses up to $10,000; applicants may apply in multiple cycles (Aug. 31 deadline for the first cycle, Oct. 31 for the second, and a March cycle thereafter) and phase large projects across cycles. Combined applicant assistance could approach $15,000 per applicant through the Friends’ cycles plus city rebates, depending on project scope. - Program changes: clearer pre-application steps for turf removal and rain gardens, updated forms, and streamlined documentation requirements. Staff also added Ion Water (Iris/eye-on-water style programs) information and intends targeted outreach to HOAs, multifamily property managers and the Chamber of Commerce.
Council members praised the overhaul and suggested additional outreach to businesses and multifamily property owners and consideration of commercial-grade washers for rebates; Tracy said staff will investigate national standards and coefficient approaches to include commercial equipment where feasible.
No formal action was required; staff will continue implementation and outreach and expects to publish cleaned rebate data and updated savings estimates in October.
