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9.A. - Page 31 of 34 Exception 9 — Emergency Centers are not required to be All -Electric Buildings. • Gas may serve as a back-up energy source to power certain appliances in the event of emergencies. This is beneficial to emergency centers in the event of power failure during an emergency. Emergency centers are buildings or structures used in the case of natural disaster or other emergencies. • Burlingame, Campbell, Los Gatos, Menlo Park, Pacifica, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, and Saratoga have adopted this exception. Staff does not recommend adopting Exception 9. There are alternative backup energy sources such as solar panels and battery storage that could assist in providing energy. Additionally, the Reach Codes do not prohibit utilization of exterior gas generators to provide backup energy. Exception 10 — High -Rise Residential Buildings may contain non -electric water -heating systems. • Staff received feedback from contractors and designers regarding the difficulty of designing and constructing an all -electric central water heating system. They indicate natural gas powered systems are preferred as the systems take up less space, are easier to maintain, and have more reliable backup mechanisms. • Hayward, Los Gatos, San Jose, and San Mateo have exempted electric water -heating systems as their Reach Codes allow for mixed -fuel construction in high-rise residential buildings. • Staff does not recommend adopting Exception 10. Much of the concern for requiring all -electric water heating in high-rise residential buildings is due to central heat pump water heating and the cost-effectiveness study having only evaluated high-rise residential buildings of four to seven stories. The concern is for high-rise buildings eight stories and above. Central heat pump water heating was initially found to be not cost effective due to the energy required for the pump system and the cost of the system evaluated. While this is true, the Statewide CASE Team, the body responsible for developing recommendations on energy standards to the CEC, is currently developing a cost-effectiveness study of central heat pump water heating systems for residential buildings eight stories and above which will be released later this year. This study will also evaluate other central heat pump water systems which are less expensive. • There is also another all -electric alternative which was found to be cost effective: clustered water heating. Clustered water heating is a system of multiple water heaters with each water heater serving a certain number of units. This was evaluated for buildings four to seven stories, but can also be applied to buildings eight stories and above. This can be a possible alternative since it does not have the same issues as central heat pump water systems. Of Redwood City's current residential developments under review, approved, or under construction, only one project is eight stories (Greystar IV), though there are other proposed projects that could meet or exceed eight stories. It is anticipated though that the all -electric requirement for water heating will have minimal impact on future high-rise residential multifamily buildings. Exception 11— Residential Buildings may contain non -electric fireplaces and cooking appliances, including but not limited to stoves, ovens, cooking ranges, and broilers. • This exception would apply to new single-family homes, duplexes, and all multi -family units. However, single family homes and residential structures under four stories will be required to be electric capable, which means the location of the gas appliance must also be prewired for future electric appliance installation. Campbell, Hayward, Menlo Park, Pacifica, Palo Alto, and Saratoga have adopted similar exceptions for both non -electric cooking appliances and fireplaces. Page 11 of 14 City of Redwood City 1017 Middlefield Road, Redwood City, CA. 94063 Tel: 650-780-7000 www.redwoodcity.org 133