Want an Electric Vehicle but Live in an Apartment?

Two companies have teamed up to provide solar-powered, electric vehicle charging with battery storage in 68 apartment buildings in San Francisco. They will rent spaces for charging by tenants. Roofs will also be rented and covered with solar panels.

2 minute read

December 31, 2014, 8:00 AM PST

By Irvin Dawid


San Francisco, one of the greenest cities in the country, is not coincidentally also one of the densest, which poses difficulties should an apartment dweller want to lease or purchase an electric vehicle (EV). "More than 60 percent of San Franciscans rent, usually in multiunit buildings that may or may not have a shared garage," writes David R. BakerThe San Francisco Chronicle's clean tech and energy reporter.

Powertree Services, a San Francisco start-up, has a solution. It "is partnering with Japanese electronics giant Panasonic to install chargers in 68 San Francisco apartment buildings, using an approach that borrows heavily from the no-money-down leases that have revolutionized the solar industry," writes Baker.

In each building, Powertree will rent several parking spaces in the garage and supply level-two charging stations for each space. Powertree will also rent the building's roof and install solar panels. The panels will feed a lithium-ion battery pack, which in turn will feed the charger

The landlord pays nothing and gets a new stream of rent in return. Tenants can sign up with Powertree to charge their cars or use electricity from the panels, paying a flat monthly fee for each service. (The company has not yet announced the size of those fees.)

Julia Pyper of GreenTech Media writes that "(t)he combination of solar and storage will help to smooth the spike in demand from high-power EV charging and provide ancillary services to support the grid."

Bringing together three solutions -- vehicle charging with solar and battery backup -- “has multiple benefits for every stakeholder, be it EV customers, the building owner, or the utility,” said Jon Ethington, project manager for Panasonic.

"Owners of multi-tenant apartment and mixed-use buildings face a rising demand from tenants, drivers and new regulations that combine to require them to install, manage, upgrade electric charging facilities and support electric vehicles,” said Stacey Reineccius, founder and CEO of Powertree.

As we noted in September, Gov. Jerry Brown (D-Calif.) signed AB 2565, which allows "renters to work with their landlords to install charging stations for electric vehicles.

It "require(s) a lessor of a dwelling to approve a written request of a lessee to install an electric vehicle charging station at a parking space allotted for the lessee." See the bill language for exceptions.

The bill takes effect in July—Powertree stands to gain if apartment renters want to purchase or lease EVs and inform their landlords that they want to charge them in their buildings. 

Monday, October 20, 2014 in San Francisco Chronicle

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Wastewater pouring out from a pipe.

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage

Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

April 13, 2025 - Inside Climate News

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Black and white photos of camp made up of small 'earthquake shacks' in Dolores Park in 1906 after the San Francisco earthquake.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees

More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

April 15, 2025 - Charles F. Bloszies

People walking up and down stairs in New York City subway station.

In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving

Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.

April 18 - Scientific American

White public transit bus with bike on front bike rack in Nashville, Tennessee.

Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan

Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.

April 18 - Bloomberg CityLab

An engineer controlling a quality of water ,aerated activated sludge tank at a waste water treatment plant.

Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding

The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.

April 18 - Smart Cities Dive