Partnerships with Purpose: Providing Heat Pumps with the City of Gresham

Partnerships with Purpose: Providing Heat Pumps with the City of Gresham

September 29, 2025 Climate Change, Energy Efficiency, Home, Partner Highlight

Eighteen households in Gresham are now saving $875–$1,033 per year on electricity after receiving new heat pumps from Community Energy Project (CEP) and our partners. Since the project wrapped on June 30th, these families have reported an 88% drop in electricity use—proving just how transformative energy efficiency can be.

Before this project, none of these households had access to cooling measures, and six lacked working heat. By combining multiple streams of funding, CEP and our partners ensured more families can live comfortably at home—while keeping more money in their pockets.

Putting Families First

This project prioritized households with the highest energy burdens. CEP canvassed mobile home parks to reach families without cooling resources and those most vulnerable to climate impacts such as pollution and extreme heat.

Making It Happen

CEP supported these home retrofits through financial investments, staff time, and project management. But we can’t do this work alone. Installing 18 heat pumps costs $210,000—a significant investment made possible when multiple partners come together.

The City of Gresham provided $50,000, which was matched by Rewiring America. Together, these contributions would have funded just five heat pumps. By teaming up with the Oregon Heat Pump Deployment Program and Energy Trust of Oregon, CEP was able to triple that impact, reaching all 18 households.

Why It Matters

Nearly 28% of Oregon households are “energy burdened,” spending more than 6% of their income on utility bills. Many face the impossible choice between cooling their homes and affording food, medication, or other necessities. Thanks to the generosity and coordination of our partners, we were able to address this inequity and improve stability for Gresham families.

Partnerships like this make life-changing work possible. CEP is excited to be pursuing a similar project with partners at the City of Hillsboro and the Residential Retrofits for Energy Equity (R2E2) initiative, a project from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Elevate, Emerald Cities Collaborative, and HR&A Advisors. 

Are you CEP’s next partner? 

Email hello@communityenergyproject.org to explore upcoming opportunities.