Technical Advisory Group Meetings
Meeting #1 – January 21, 2026: Climate Hazards and Vulnerabilities
At the first TAG meeting, the project team introduced the Blue Skies Initiative and its purpose and engaged partner agencies, utility providers, and City department representatives to support coordinated planning. Five partner agencies and seven City departments participated. The meeting focused on wildfire and smoke, flooding, drought and water supply, and extreme heat, with discussion centered on available data, current efforts, and opportunities to strengthen resilience and improve coordination across agencies.
Meeting #2 – February 18, 2026: Transportation and Land Use
At the second TAG meeting, participants reviewed transportation and land-use trends, including travel patterns, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), electric vehicle adoption, safety, and mode shift data. Representatives from four partner agencies and four City departments discussed key constraints, opportunities, and strategies to support greenhouse gas reduction and a more connected, resilient transportation system.
Meeting #3 – March 18, 2026: Buildings and Energy
At the third TAG meeting, participants discussed buildings and energy trends in Gilroy, with a focus on energy efficiency, building electrification, electric vehicle adoption, and long-term climate resilience. Representatives from partner agencies and City departments shared perspectives on barriers to the adoption of clean energy technologies, including cost, infrastructure, and access to incentives. The discussion also highlighted existing policies, programs, and funding opportunities, along with climate adaptation challenges such as heat waves and power outages, and strategies to improve building resilience, energy reliability, and community preparedness.
Meeting #4 – April 22, 2026: Strategy Development
At the fourth and final TAG meeting, participants reviewed key themes and synthesized feedback from previous meetings to help refine strategies for the Blue Skies Initiative. Representatives from partner agencies and City departments confirmed whether the project team accurately captured the most important technical issues, discussed implementation considerations, and identified useful indicators for tracking progress over time. The conversation also highlighted existing resources, partnerships, and equity considerations to help ensure future strategies are practical, measurable, and responsive to community needs.
Community-Based Organization Focus Group Meetings
Meeting #1 – January 15, 2026: Climate Hazards and Vulnerabilities
At the first CBO focus group meeting, the project team introduced the Blue Skies Initiative and discussed how community input will help shape strategies that reflect local priorities and experiences. Participants from 17 community organizations shared perspectives on wildfire and smoke, flooding, drought and water supply, and extreme heat, including how these hazards affect the communities they serve and where additional support is needed.
Meeting #2 – February 12, 2026: Transportation and Land Use
At the second CBO focus group meeting, participants from seven CBOs discussed how transportation and land-use patterns affect daily travel, access to essential destinations, and overall mobility within Gilroy. Participants shared perspectives on barriers, safety concerns, and improvements that could make walking, biking, transit, and other transportation options more accessible and reliable.
Meeting #3 – March 12, 2026: Buildings and Energy
At the third CBO focus group meeting, participants from eight CBOs discussed how building types and energy trends affect energy reliability, energy bills, and access to electric appliances and vehicles in Gilroy. Participants shared perspectives on community needs and solutions that could make buildings more energy efficient, help people switch to clean energy technologies, and protect Gilroy residents during extreme weather events.
Meeting #4 – April 17, 2026: Strategy Development
At the fourth and final CBO focus group meeting, participants from five community-based organizations reviewed synthesized input from the previous three meetings, which was organized into key themes and actionable strategies to consider as the project transitions into measure development. The discussion focused on confirming whether the project team accurately captured community priorities. The group activity also helped identify the prioritization of possible strategies and highlighted who may already be leading related work in the community. Attendees emphasized equity considerations and the importance of ensuring vulnerable populations are not left behind as the planning process continued, and this feedback helped shape recommendations for the next phase of the Blue Skies Initiative.
