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Technical Assistance for Resilience Hubs

Technical Assistance helps community-serving facilities plan for a solar and battery storage system that keeps critical services available during power outages.

Ava’s Technical Assistance (TA) supports community-serving sites that want to maintain critical services during power outages and are ready to begin planning for energy resilience. Through TA, Ava and our partners help clarify your resilience goals, understand your building’s energy needs during an outage, and explore how a solar and battery storage system can help maintain service continuity during an emergency.

Participating in TA does not guarantee incentives or installation. It is a planning and readiness step that enables your community-serving site to benefit from technical energy expertise early on in your energy resilience journey.

Services Provided Through Technical Assistance

If you are approved for TA, our partner NV5 will provide:

  • Feasibility assessment: High-level evaluation of whether solar and battery storage could support your site’s identified critical services, including support with prioritizing electrical loads based on community‑defined needs during grid outages, concept-level system sizing and layout, and initial cost estimates
  • Procurement support: Review of third-party contractor proposals and contracts to help evaluate project scope, align with resilience goals, and explain technical terms and considerations 
  • Funding resources: Information about potential grants and third-party funding sources 

To qualify for TA as part of cohort 2, sites must apply by December 1, 2026.

Key Dates

Cohort 1 (2026)

  • Technical Assistance Enrollment: Closed (sites currently in progress)
  • Incentive Application: Open Summer 2026
  • Incentive Application Deadline: December 1, 2026

Cohort 2 (2026–2027)

  • Technical Assistance Enrollment: Open now through December 1, 2026
  • Incentive Application: Expected to open in Early 2027
  • Incentive Application Deadline: Summer – Fall 2027

Is Technical Assistance Right for You?

You may be a good fit for TA if:

  • You are a community-serving facility
  • You have a general understanding of how your building could operate during an outage and who it would serve
  • You have considered what services your community may need during a power outage and are interested in supporting those services with solar and battery storage
  • You own your building or have landlord approval to pursue energy upgrades

Sites must meet the following eligibility criteria to participate:

  • Be a non-residential Ava electricity customer
  • Be a community-serving facility
  • Have physical space to install solar and battery storage 
  • Have property owner or landlord approval
  • Intend to provide one or more critical services during power outages that benefit the surrounding community for at least 10 years

Critical services include:

  • Shelter
  • Clean air or climate-controlled space
  • Refrigeration
  • Device charging 
  • EV charging
  • Wi-Fi
  • Fresh water access
  • Food distribution 
  • Other services (with Ava approval only)

How To Get Started

Ava partners with Emerald Cities Collaborative (ECC) to support community outreach and guide interested sites through the TA intake and enrollment process. ECC will:

  • Conduct an initial screening discussion to understand your site, services, and potential resilience use cases 
  • Help determine whether TA is a good fit
  • Guide you through completing the Resilience Readiness Questionnaire about your site, services, and outage planning 
  • Connect eligible sites with Ava’s TA engineering consultant, NV5

Reach out by December 1, 2026, to get started:

Contact ECC

Frequently Asked Questions

Does TA guarantee we will receive an incentive?

No. TA supports feasibility assessment and procurement support, but does not guarantee funding for installing solar and battery storage systems. Sites enrolled in Cohort 2 may be eligible to apply for incentive funding when the next application window opens in early 2027, subject to program requirements and available funding.

If I already have a solar system and I’m looking to add batteries, am I eligible?

Yes. Sites with existing solar are still eligible for TA. TA can help evaluate the feasibility of adding a battery for your resilience purposes.

What services are not included in TA?

TA is focused on pre-development planning only. It does not include:

  • Contractor procurement, bidding, or negotiation
  • Legal services or legal advice
  • Detailed system design or engineering required for construction 
  • Permitting, construction, or installation support
  • Ongoing critical services and systems operations or maintenance support
  • Community engagement or communications

Sites are responsible for selecting and contracting with installers and vendors if they choose to move forward. 

What is the Resilience Readiness Questionnaire?

The Resilience Readiness Questionnaire is an intake tool used to inform readiness for TA. Questions include:

  • The services your site provides to the community
  • Critical operations and energy needs during outages
  • Existing building conditions and energy systems

ECC will guide you through completing this questionnaire.

How long does TA take?

TA timelines vary depending on the site, the TA services requested, and the availability of information needed for analysis. Feasibility analysis typically takes 8-12 weeks, but TA support may remain available for up to one year to help sites review contractor proposals.