Palo Alto unveils heat‑pump yard‑sign designs; working group becomes advisory to staff

PALO ALTO, Calif. — At the April 4 meeting of the Climate Action Sustainability Committee, City communications staff presented two proposed yard‑sign designs promoting heat pump water heaters and the city's 80 by 30 climate goal, and staff clarified the formal status of the SCAP working group under Brown Act procedures.

Megan Horgan Taylor, the city's chief communications officer, showed two design concepts: one focused on a program marketing motif for heat pump water heaters and the other on a broader home‑electrification and neighbor‑outreach message tied to the 80 by 30 goal. "We're gonna do 25 of each, and see how that goes," Horgan Taylor said, describing a small initial print run to test the signs at events and with program participants.

Horgan Taylor said signs will include a QR code linking to the city's program page and will be used as part of outreach — for example, to invite neighbors to view a participant's heat pump installation. Staff told the committee they had incorporated working‑group feedback on look and logo prominence and plan to iterate after the initial test batch.

Working group status

Brad Eggleston, director of public works, clarified earlier remarks about the city's SCAP working group. He said the working group — a group of community advisers convened in prior years — will continue but its formal role has shifted under Brown Act rules: "the main change ... is that the working group is advisory to staff rather than advisory to the committee itself," Eggleston said. Staff will continue to host separate working‑group meetings, encourage committee members to attend one at a time, and share working‑group perspectives at public committee meetings.

Staff also noted that working‑group meetings are not streamed and generally provide an opportunity for hybrid participation; members of the public continue to participate through public comment at committee meetings.

Why it matters

The yard‑sign rollout is part of targeted outreach for early‑stage electrification programs (heat pump water heater promotions and home electrification awareness) and is intended to create neighborhood awareness through testimonials and demonstrations. The working‑group clarification matters procedurally: under the Brown Act the committee's public meetings are broadcast and governed by open‑meeting rules, while the working group will advise staff outside those formal committee sessions.

What was decided and next steps

Staff will proceed with a small test print run (initially 25 signs of each design), collect feedback at upcoming events (including the city’s Earth Day Festival), and return with lessons learned and possible revisions. Committee members urged staff to consider a larger initial print run and to use the signs at community events.

Quotes

"We're gonna do 25 of each, and see how that goes," Megan Horgan Taylor said of the initial yard‑sign run.

"The main change ... is that the working group is advisory to staff rather than advisory to the committee itself," Brad Eggleston said, summarizing procedural changes arising from Brown Act coverage.

Context and limits

Staff framed the yard‑signs as one tool in a broader outreach toolkit that includes participant testimonials, program pages, and community events. The initial print run is intentionally small to allow iteration; committee members suggested increasing quantities for major events.

Practical details

- Initial print: staff proposed 25 signs of each of two designs for testing. - Message focus: heat pump water heaters, home electrification, the city's 80 by 30 goal, and a QR code linking to the city's program page. - Events: staff highlighted the upcoming Earth Day Festival as a distribution opportunity.

Next steps

Staff will test the signs, collect participant feedback, and bring any proposed revisions back to the committee; they will also schedule working‑group meetings and continue to incorporate community adviser input into program design.