Residents of Carroll Inn in downtown Sunnyvale are feeling cool air inside their apartments for the first time since the building opened in 1994. A $2.7 million, multi-phase renovation swapped out gas appliances for electric heat pumps, added solar panels, and gave all 122 affordable homes air conditioning for the first time in the property’s history.
MidPen Housing, which owns and operates the 174 Carroll St. property, completed the all-electric conversion in October 2025, according to MidPen Housing. The work replaced every gas appliance in the building with electric alternatives, installed heat pumps that handle heating, cooling and water heating, and added electric dryers. The nonprofit says the new systems run on clean electricity Carroll Inn generates through its own solar panels and receives from Silicon Valley Clean Energy.
As The Mercury News reports, resident Alicia Prioste said the difference is noticeable inside her studio apartment, describing how the air conditioning feels much better now that cool air circulates instead of hot air. Prioste first moved into Carroll Inn in March 2003, left in May 2009 because of a medical condition, and returned in December 2021. She now rents a studio at the property while studying music at San Jose State University, and told the outlet that affordable rent has helped her pursue her education.
Utilities Rolled Into Rent as Costs Stay Controlled
Because Carroll Inn’s utilities are included in residents’ rent rather than billed individually, the property’s operating costs carry extra weight for the people who live there. Lyn Hikida, MidPen Housing’s vice president of corporate communications and public relations, said the upgrades are designed to improve energy efficiency and help control the property’s operating costs over time, according to the same report. Lower operating costs, Hikida added, help keep rents lower for residents…