SDG&E Energy Innovation Center To Educate and Inform San Diego Businesses and Trades People

The Existing Structure - Bruce Bergman

On December 10, 2010, I attended the construction kick-off ceremony for SDG&E’s Energy Innovation Center in the Clairemont community of San Diego.

Scheduled to open in the Spring of 2011, this renovation project plans to be a premiere venue for showcasing and learning about sustainable, green building.

As a former 1998 Chairman of the Clairemont Mesa Planning Committee, I am pleased to see this neighborhood center revitalization.

Douglas Kot, Executive Director of the USGBC San Diego Chapter, summed it up well during his representative speech expressing that this building shall have a “Net Positive Energy.” Reasoning that the “...tools and resources in this building will have a positive effect on the community.”

Douglas Kot - USGBC San Diego Chapter Executive Director

In a press release announcing the new center, local business leaders offered their perspective:

"We are looking forward to using the center as a strategic resource for our members and the local restaurant industry in general to share ideas and learn practical applications of the latest energy-efficient equipment," said Katharine Hansen, director of local government affairs for the California Restaurant Association. "As our members and others understand better how to use energy and save money on their energy bills, SDG&E's new center will have a lasting impact on sustainability in the region."

"This will be a great forum for showing off some of the innovative products and solutions coming out of San Diego-based companies," said Lisa Bicker, president of Clean Tech San Diego. "The center will serve as an important resource for our robust and growing clean tech cluster of more than 750 companies."