Committee backs design guidelines for multifamily EV charging; staff aims to pilot financing model

The Palo Alto Climate Action & Sustainability Committee voted 3‑0 Sept. 19 to recommend that City Council adopt new design guidelines for a successor multifamily electric vehicle (EV) charging program. Staff described the guidelines as a shift from per‑charger rebates toward scalable financing models, managed charging and site‑appropriate installations to expand access across the city’s multifamily housing stock.

Rachel DeFranco, utilities program services manager, summarized the limits of the city’s current EV rebate program (EV‑1) and the rationale for new guidance. Since 2017, the program has installed charging at 26 multifamily properties with a total of 325 chargers serving 1,324 residential units, DeFranco said; Palo Alto has roughly 11,000 multifamily units citywide. DeFranco said the city has spent about $1.5 million in incentives under the current program and that, if the existing incentive model were scaled to reach all ~577…