When the electric utility for Mesa, Arizona, was founded in 1917, it served a frontier town of fewer than 3,000 residents. The opening of the community-owned utility allowed the settlement to grow rapidly, building a legacy of dedicated service and support for the city, which is now home to over 500,000 residents.
| Population | 517,151 |
| Electric customers | 18,101 |
| Utility formed | 1917 |
| Utility employees | 37 |
Scott Bouchie, energy and sustainability director for Mesa Electric, grew up in the city and has been pleased with Mesa’s growth, which has seen its population increase more than 25% since the turn of the 21st century. “It’s all been very satisfying. We went from a city where downtown was a very quiet place after 5 pm to building a light rail, restaurants, and an arts center. It used to be there were no places to buy a drink, and now we have breweries and fine dining that are available after the sun goes down.”
Bouchie noted that Mesa has retained its local character and sense of community amid all the development. “One of the things that really sticks out to me about downtown Mesa is that it’s not corporate. We have lot of mom-and-pop local businesses that thrive here.”
Although Mesa is now one of the 40 largest metro areas in the U.S., Mesa Electric itself remains a smaller utility. That’s because the Salt River Project provides service to large portions of the greater metro area, whereas Mesa Electric serves the city’s downtown and historic districts. Mesa Electric staff are dedicated to supporting the community, whether through local outreach events or its Trees Are Cool tree-planting program that is designed to both beautify the city and mitigate summer air conditioning load.
“In Arizona’s dry heat, the difference between the sun and the shade is significant. And that cooling effect doesn’t just benefit your home. It reduces AC load, which reduces your bill and reduces our infrastructure needs, all while the trees serve as a carbon sink,” Bouchie said.
Mesa Electric is also working to incorporate additional solar into its supply portfolio alongside battery storage development to help meet its renewable energy goals and shave rates during peak summer hours. Bouchie mentioned some solar projects that are expected to come online in late 2027 that include battery storage, which is the first time Mesa has developed a storage project.
“We’ll be able to take that inexpensive solar during the day, put it into batteries, and then discharge that as the sun is setting. It will help us shave what is the most expensive energy that we typically purchase, which is that 4 to 7 pm summertime electricity,” he said.
Mesa’s local quality of life has drawn national recognition — the city was ranked as the 10th best-run city in America in a 2026 national survey from WalletHub, and its electric utility has worked to uphold and advance that great quality of life amid the wave of new development. This has included ongoing coordination with city developers to ensure Mesa’s electric department can support new housing developments.
“When you take a parking lot that had maybe 12 lights in it and then add 200 apartments in an eight-story building, that’s a significantly different load for that area. Having the infrastructure in place to support that has been a priority for us as we work with our city council and other departments,” Bouchie said.
He attributes much of Mesa Electric’s quality service to how well the public power utility takes care of its staff, both in providing meaningful work that supports the greater community and in ensuring a positive working environment that builds and retains talent over decades.
“I’ve worked here for almost 30 years, and there really is a public-service-driven culture at the city of Mesa. It has allowed me to make a great life for my family and build a career that has been both fun and satisfying. It speaks highly of the organization that we try and make sure we’re taking care of our employees. And they pass that along in the dedicated work they put into taking care of our residents,” Bouchie said.
