Board approves energy-management agreement meant to cut utility costs

The Riverside Unified School District board voted Jan. 15 to approve an agreement with Senergistix for districtwide energy-management and building-health services. District staff said the program includes analytics and simulation tools, on-site energy specialists and a curriculum component for student engagement.

Carrie Devils, representing Senergistix, described a platform that provides real-time energy analytics, simulation tools for retrofit options and monthly reporting for each campus. She said the first six months of the program are free, performance begins in month seven and the company guarantees savings, with reimbursements if savings targets are not met.

Staff and trustees discussed how Senergistix specialists would integrate with site operations and maintenance teams, saying experts may perform audits in off-hours and work with campus staff to identify irregular billing or operational issues. Trustees raised questions about the scope of recommended capital improvements and how those projects would be funded; staff said capital investments would be evaluated separately and presented when appropriate.

During the vote the student representative was allowed to vote first, and the board adopted the resolution to enter into the agreement (the meeting record references the resolution as 2026-32). The board asked staff to return with regular, school-level reporting on savings and operational impacts.

The contract was presented as funded by guaranteed savings and no immediate capital appropriation was authorized in tonight’s vote.