Under the state-mandated Housing Element, Saratoga had to plan for the development of more than 1,700 residential units over the next eight years. "Saratoga is being forced to address that," Mayor Tina Walia said at a Dec. 7 city council meeting. "We don’t have a choice.”
New SVCE board chair
Saratoga City Councilmember Tina Walia was recently elected as board chair of Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE) for 2024.
Walia joined the SVCE Board of Directors in 2021 and served as vice chair in 2023. During this time, she was chair of the SVCE Executive Committee and sat on the Finance and Administration Committee, CEO Search Ad Hoc Committee and Transition Ad Hoc Committee.
As vice chair, Walia voted to approve three long-term contracts for renewable energy projects administered by the Sunnyvale-based clean energy aggregator.
Los Altos Hills Councilmember George Tyson will serve as vice chair of the SVCE board in 2024.
As a joint powers agency, SVCE is governed by a board of directors comprised of one elected representative from each member community. Board meetings are open to the public and held virtually on the second Wednesday of the month.
“Providing clear direction and collaborating with all stakeholders will lead to effective policy decisions for the agency and each community it serves,” said Walia in a statement.
For more information, visit svcleanenergy.org/board-meetings.
Clean energy update
Silicon Valley Clean Energy (SVCE) recently released the cost and energy savings Saratoga residents incurred last year with the help of the Sunnyvale-based clean energy aggregator.
Saratoga SVCE customers number 11,600 households and businesses. On-bill savings for Saratoga customers in 2023 totaled $513,200. Saratogans also received $180,200 in cash payments for generating surplus solar energy, as well as $111,000 in SVCE rebates for electric home upgrades.
For more information, visit https://svcleanenergy.org/service-area.
Originally published at Anne Gelhaus