Palo Alto committee begins planning 2026–27 climate work plan, prioritizes transport, buildings and resilience

Palo Alto’s Sustainability & Climate Action Committee on Thursday opened a high-level kickoff to develop its 2026–27 climate work plan, with staff and committee members urging sharper focus on active transportation, multifamily electrification, public EV charging and reliability planning as funding and regulatory conditions change.

Assistant Director for Climate Action Jonathan Auvenshine said the meeting was intended to “kick off discussion on our 2026 through 2027 work planning efforts” and to solicit committee priorities. He told the panel the kickoff was meant to be “very high level.”

The committee framed the work plan around three primary topic areas: transportation (walking, biking and transit), buildings (residential and nonresidential electrification) and an updated approach to carbon neutrality and removal. Staff reported that most items in the 2023–25 SCAP work plan are on track, highlighted recent pilots (heat pump water heaters and EV charging programs) and said new proposals will be informed by studies now underway, including an EV charger needs assessment and a funding study for large-scale electrification programs.

Why it matters: Committee members said Palo Alto must choose projects that deliver the most…