Spokane Connected Communities Project - Real Progress 

The Spokane Connected Communities Project is on track to meet the milestones set out by the project team at Edo, working with Avista Utilities, and Urbanova. The innovative project was awarded $6.65 million in funding by the US Department of Energy (DOE) in October 2021 “to expand the network of grid-interactive efficient building communities nationwide”. Avista and other project partners invested an additional $4.9 million in matching funds. The aim of the five-year, $11.5 million project is to optimize up to 75 residential and commercial buildings with energy-efficiency technologies and distributed energy resources (DER).

What Are Grid-Interactive Buildings?

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Building Technologies Office (BTO) introduced the concept of Grid-Interactive Efficient Buildings (GEBs) in late 2019. The task force envisions a future where buildings operate dynamically with the grid to make electricity more affordable and integrate distributed energy resources (DERs) while meeting the needs of building occupants. GEBs use smart controls, sensors, and analytics to communicate with the electrical grid, reducing the amount of energy they require during peak demand periods. This capability optimizes buildings and distributes energy resources to maintain occupant comfort, lower utility bills, and reduce grid system costs.

Experts estimate that national adoption of GEBs could save utilities between $100–200 billion in U.S. electric power system costs over the next two decades. Additionally, GEBs could decrease CO₂ emissions by 80 million tons per year by 2030—about 6% of total power sector CO₂ emissions—equivalent to the annual emissions of 50 medium-sized coal plants or 17 million cars.

What Are Connected Communities?

The term “connected communities” was popularized in the energy sector with the founding of the Connected Communities program. DOE agencies, including the BTO, The Vehicle Technologies Office, The Office of Electricity, and The Lawrence Berkeley National Labs, launched the program with the intention of driving innovation at the grid edge and raising the bar for buildings to serve as grid resources.

Three Phases

In line with the DOE’s Connected Community framework, partners in this efficient building (GEB) initiative have outlined a five-year implementation plan in three distinct phases:

1. Panning and Outreach (2022–2024) – Focus on customer engagement and communication strategies.
2. Install & Evaluate (2024–2026) – Install equipment, assess performance, and refine strategies.
3. Scaling (2026–2027) – Document lessons learned and develop scalable utility programs.

Customer Engagement Survey

To better understand customers’ perceptions, motivations, and behaviors regarding the proposed GEB distributed energy solutions, customer surveys were conducted with residents and businesses on the feeders associated with the 3rd and Hatch substations. The survey was administered to approximately 4,900 residential parcels, primarily single-family homes (91%), with some duplexes, multiplexes (5%), and apartments (3%). Additionally, there are 981 commercial businesses in the service area, mostly in the retail, service, and wholesale sectors. The response from 2,200 residential and 500 commercial customers was overwhelmingly positive, with over 70% expressing interest in Spokane Connected Communities’ demand flexibility solutions.

Customer Profiling and Equipment Packaging

Fundamental to the project’s success was creating customer-specific hardware packages for residential, small commercial, large commercial, and industrial customers. Data modeling and simulation of loads from automated meter infrastructure were analyzed to give the partners valuable insights and guidance as they developed equipment packages tailored to each customer class. The following Custom Solution Packages were developed for four different customer segments:

• Residential Package features the ecobee Smart Thermostat, weatherization options, and Panasonic EVERVOLT® Battery.

• Small Commercial Package includes 1-5 Schneider Electric Smart Thermostats, energy meters, networking tools, and a separate VOLTTRON device for advanced energy management capabilities

• Large Commercial Package includes the Edo Gateway, BAS Integration, and HVAC Optimization for more complex energy needs.

• Public Buildings Package is equipped with EV Charging capabilities and Electric Energy Storage for sustainable public use.

Incentives

In April 2024, Avista received regulatory approval from the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission for revisions to Tariff WN U-28 related to the project and the new proposed Tariff Schedule 71. Under this new tariff schedule, monthly and annual incentives were established for the following participant categories.

Residential and small commercial participants will receive monthly participation payments and annual performance bonuses, while large commercial customers receive quarterly demand flexibility capacity payments and annual performance credits.

Measurable Targets and Energy Justice

One of the underlying strategies of the Connected Communities project is offering energy efficiency upgrades for low-to-moderate-income households. Low-income homeowners in high-energy-burden areas typically spend over 10% of their income on heating and cooling. Customized outreach strategies have been developed to address the unique needs of these communities, which will encourage fuller participation. The customized packages also provide support where needed, including financial aid, technical assistance, and education on energy-efficient technologies.

One of the goals of the project is to reduce electricity bills by 10-20% and deliver operational improvements for commercial, industrial, and residential (including low-income) buildings. In Phase Two and Three, equity metrics will be tracked and reported, to measure participation rates, energy savings, and improvements in affordability, with a measurable outcome of 40% participation from disadvantaged communities.

Edo Provides Virtual Power Plant solutions.

Learn More

Boots on the Ground

As Phase One concludes, the focus will shift to installing hardware at customer locations in select residences and buildings, guided by data profiles and customer feedback. To date, 35% of the total participants have enrolled (20% of commercial and 42% of residential), with 2 commercial installs completed and 15 residential installs completed (with a goal of 20 residential installs). Several other customers are in the advanced stages of participation. Importantly, we have already met our capacity flex goal, with 2.25 MW of committed capacity. No load shifting has occurred yet.

The goal of Phase Two will be to gather performance data from real-world environments. Teams will be testing hardware in the partner’s lab and in the field, learning from the process of installing equipment at customer sites and refining the packages to make installations more efficient and less invasive. This will inform the next stages of the project and refine, if necessary, the technology being developed, particularly through demand flexibility, for broader deployment.

Key Learnings

As the project progresses, several key lessons have emerged that will influence future efforts in demand flexibility and grid-interactive building solutions. It’s clear that planning does not always align with reality, as recruitment requires a multi-pronged approach and is influenced by seasonality and weather conditions. Ideal customers are not always ideal if they do not participate, and qualification processes can be complex, particularly when interoperability challenges arise between diverse technology vendors. Moreover, while interest in battery storage continues to grow, the real impact lies in engaging communities. These insights will be invaluable in refining recruitment strategies, addressing challenges in system integration, and ensuring long-term success as the project scales.

 

The Spokane Connected Communities project exemplifies the vital role of grid-integrated buildings in optimizing energy use and reducing emissions.

Conclusion

As highlighted in a recent article by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), buildings account for 75% of electricity consumption in the U.S. and are a major contributor to carbon emissions. The article outlines how the building sector can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 65% by 2035 and 90% by 2050. As we continue to develop these solutions, we move closer to a cleaner, more resilient energy future that benefits both the grid and the communities we serve.

Acknowledgment

This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or EERE Award No. DE-EE009775.0000 with Spokane Edo LLC Special Terms and Conditions 9 represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.