SAN DIEGO – San Diego Gas & Electric’s EV Fleet Day on April 19 at its Century Park campus drew companies from San Diego County and beyond that are helping move the state toward a carbon neutral future.
SDG&E hosts the annual event to encourage sustainability and inform fleet operators about how to go about electrifying their vehicles. It also drew industry experts, infrastructure providers, clean tech and clean transportation information, exhibits and on-site vehicles to explore — with some companies offering ride-alongs in electric vehicles, including a school bus.
The state has established a target that 100% of in-state sales of new passenger cars and trucks will be zero-emission by 2035, ramping up the sales requirement for zero-emission passenger vehicles starting with the 2026 model year, to achieve 100% by 2035.
California has set similar goals for medium-duty, heavy-duty and off-road vehicles and equipment operations, moving toward having zero-emission trucks and buses by 2045.
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As part of helping companies with the change, SDG&E says it is working to help address the biggest barrier to electrifying – high upfront costs. SDG&E offers financial incentives for installing charging infrastructure.
State voucher incentives such as California Hybrid and Zero-emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project and its Innovative Small E-Fleet pilot also help business operators, municipalities and school districts transition to electric and deploy all-electric vehicles at a fraction of the cost.
Part of the new line of vehicles rolled out by San Diego Gas & Electric is an electrified work truck that the company shared at its SDG&E EV Fleet Day earlier this month on the SDG&E Century Park campus. Photo by Karen Pearlman
Locals are Invested and Vested
Geared toward San Diego County fleet managers who operate medium-and heavy-duty vehicles, Fleet Day drew companies with vested interests in electrification.
Local vendors included Eversun Energy Inc., a Bay Park-headquartered business that makes portable, sustainable light towers powered by the sun and rechargeable batteries, and Pro Energy Services LLC out of Escondido, which provides services to companies in the electrical distribution and transmission industries.
Austin Vawter CEO Eversun Energy Inc.
Eversun has created light towers that offer 30,000 square feet of illumination, which it hopes will appeal to utility companies, construction sectors and beyond, says Eversun founder Austin Vawter.
Part of the Southern California Energy Innovation Network (SCEIN), a program for startups developing solutions to help California meet its energy goals, Vawter, an engineer, started Eversun in 2018 while searching for a way to keep sports courts lit up at night.
Vawter came up with idea of creating portable lighting using sustainable parts so that he and his friends could continue playing volleyball on the sand at Mission Beach when the sun set.
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Beginning as “a telescopic flagpole, golf cart batteries and cheap headlights all wired up,” the product grew to include a modified electric bike battery that made the light tower quieter, put out less pollution and was more portable.
The towers have become streamlined and more sustainable, made with carbon fiber, using lumen LED lamps and a lithium-ion battery system, moving from a consumer-driven sporting goods-type company to a B2B.
Eversun has evolved into making larger light towers that it hopes will appeal to construction crews working into the wee hours, companies working on freeways and first responders.
“The customers we’re going after are moving into clean energy space,” Vawter said.
“There are tons of projects that operate at night in construction, and especially with the heat and the climate change it’s just getting hotter and hotter during the summer.
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They’re going to have to shift work at night and then in the wintertime it gets darker earlier, so their daytime shifts are shorter.”
Eversun Energy CEO Austin Vawter (center) with the company’s Brian Weisberg (left) and Carlos Trevino (right). Photo by Karen Pearlman
Readying for the Future Today
Pro Energy Services CEO Gavin Nechochea said his company handles all services everything related to utility infrastructure “except putting the pole on the wire,” and works with SDG&E and other utility companies as well as contractors.
Gavin Necochea CEO Pro Energy Services Group LLC
A partnership of 2009-founded Warren James Construction and Pro Tool and Equipment Inc., it has grown from 50 employees when it began as its own company in 2018 to nearly 500 employees.
Necochea said his company recently invested in nearly a dozen electric vehicles for its fleet, looking to be a leader working toward meeting state mandates.
“What we’re noticing in electrifying everything is that train that has already left the station and it is it is barreling down the tracks, and if you don’t get with that program, it’s going be real hard to compete at some level, especially here in California,” Necochea said. “There’s opportunity everywhere so you have to be ready to be able to pivot to be able to jump to these different opportunities that pop up.
“We don’t worry about what’s happened or why they’ve done it or the reasons behind it, we just embrace the change.”
Pro Energy Services Group LLC FOUNDED: 2018 (earlier versions in 2009) CEO: Gavin Necochea HEADQUARTERS: Escondido BUSINESS: Utility-Based Services REVENUE: from 2018-2020 30% YOY growth EMPLOYEES: 450 WEBSITE: proeservices.com CONTACT: 760-744-7077 SOCIAL IMPACT: CEO Necochea is a member of and has done some mentorship with the Latino Business Action Network. NOTABLE: Roots of the company and Warren James Construction and Pro Tool and Equipment Inc., both San Diego-based companies.
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Eversun Energy Inc. FOUNDED: 2019 CEO: Austin Vawter HEADQUARTERS: San Diego BUSINESS: Renewable Energy Equipment Manufacturing FUNDING: Currently in $2.5M Series A; first VC investment of $300,000 in 2023 EMPLOYEES: 3 WEBSITE: eversun.io CONTACT: 858-480-9671 SOCIAL IMPACT: Company’s sustainable lighting that helps others be energy efficient NOTABLE: CEO Vawter is developed the first prototype of Eversun’s product so he and his friends could play beach volleyball after sunset
Four suspects were behind bars Friday for allegedly beating a man to death two months ago during a fight at Linda Vista Park.
Arrested Wednesday on suspicion of murder in connection with the violent death of 59-year-old Ruben Rimorin were Juan Garcia Alavez, 21, Juan Manuel Lopez, 26, Brian Reyes, 20, and Franklin Joseph Tuell, 21, according to the San Diego Police Department.
Rimorin was found gravely injured about 3:45 a.m. Oct. 18 on a sidewalk in the 6800 block of Osler Street, just west of the park, SDPD Lt. Chris Tivanian said. Paramedics tried in vain to revive the victim before pronouncing him dead at the scene.
It remains unclear what sparked the deadly fight.
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The suspects were being held at San Diego Central Jail without bail pending arraignment, scheduled for Friday afternoon.
National City’s Pepper Park can soon expand in size by nearly 50%, thanks to a ruling this week by the California Coastal Commission to approve the National City Balanced Plan.
The approval of the plan at the CCC’s Wednesday meeting, developed by the Port of San Diego, means that not only will the popular park have the ability to increase in size, big changes are coming for commercial, recreation and maritime uses on the National City bayfront.
“We are grateful to the California Coastal Commission for its support of the National City Balanced Plan,” said Danielle Moore, chair of the Board of Port Commissioners. “The progress we have made has been anchored in tireless collaboration with the community, business leaders and, of course, the city of National City. It’s about bringing more recreational opportunities to the bayfront while also streamlining and strengthening maritime operations, and we are eager to bring these projects to life.”
Other components of the balanced plan include:
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Realigning Marina Way to serve as the buffer area between commercial recreation and maritime uses
The closure of Tidelands Avenue between Bay Marina Drive and West 32nd Street, and West 28th Street between Tidelands Avenue and Quay Avenue, around six acres, to increase terminal efficiency by eliminating redundancies
The development of a recreational vehicle park, tent sites, cabins and the “ultimate development of up to two hotels with up to 365 rooms, as well as dry boat storage,” a port statement read
A connector rail project to connect the existing rail and loop track located on the National City Marine Terminal to additional rail car storage spots at the existing Burlington Northern Santa Fe National City Yard east of the National Distribution Center
The Board of Port Commissioners must accept the CCC’s certification, then the port and city can begin the process of completing the above projects.
“I am proud of the work we have done to help create a lasting legacy for National City, the Port of San Diego, and the entire region,” said Port Commissioner GilAnthony Ungab. “Nearly a decade in the making, this plan balances the interests of the community and many other stakeholders, addresses public access, maritime, and recreation uses, and expands waterfront access in my community.”
The National City Bayfront is 273 acres of waterfront land and 167 acres of water, and includes the National City Marine Terminal, Pepper Park, Pier 32 Marina, the Aquatic Center and pieces of public art.
Mayor Todd Gloria announced an initiative Wednesday intended to expand housing options in neighborhoods by integrating small-scale residences such as townhomes, rowhomes and cottages into an area’s existing character.
The Neighborhood Homes for All of Us initiative is also intended to support community land trusts — nonprofit organizations that acquire land to create permanent affordable housing.
“Since Day 1 of my administration, I have been focused on building more homes that San Diegans can actually afford — and getting them built faster,” Gloria said at a news conference Wednesday. “‘Neighborhood Homes for All of Us’ is the latest piece of that puzzle. This innovative program will break down the barriers that have gotten in the way of building the type of housing that I believe is ideal for young families and first-time homebuyers for whom the dream of homeownership has long felt out of reach.”
Around 80% of land zoned for housing in the city is restricted to single-family homes, which continue to increase in price, Gloria said. And a significant portion of new housing being built consists of apartment buildings with primarily studio and one-bedroom units, leaving working-class families fewer and fewer options for homes.
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Neighborhood Homes for All of Us is intended to increase the housing supply and allow community land trusts to keep housing affordable in disadvantaged communities for low- to middle-income families.
“San Diego is an incredible place to raise a family, and more families need the opportunity to do that in San Diego’s existing, highly desirable single-family neighborhoods where their kids can learn and play in a great community,” City Planning Director Heidi Vonblum said. “But today, that comes at a price that is out of reach for too many. Integrating more options for families requires careful and thoughtful planning, with input from existing and future community members across the city, to ensure these new home opportunities for San Diego’s families are built in ways that best enhance and benefit San Diego’s amazing neighborhoods.”
The initiative will roll out in two phases. In the first phase, beginning this week and continuing through next summer, San Diegans can help determine what the neighborhoods can look like. The public will be able to see renderings showing small-scale neighborhood homes within San Diego’s existing communities, along with new regulations that “provide a clear pathway for building these homes,” according to a statement from Gloria’s office.
Phase 1 will also include an open house and ways for the community to provide feedback and concerns.
Phase 2, scheduled for the second half of 2026, will be for city staff to develop regulations allowing for the building of more neighborhood homes in a way informed by the public feedback.
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The initiative is partly funded through a Regional Early Action Planning grant from the San Diego Association of Governments.
