s a growing business, we wanted a creative and agile banking partner that could understand our market and enable us to build projects.” ~Erik Stuebe, Ecoplexus“First and foremost, Bridge Bank understood solar and solar project finance. They were comfortable with all aspects of it. They were also comfortable with multi-family affordable housing and, in particular, the way the projects were funded from both an incentive and a tax perspective. They brought those areas of expertise to the table and were able to respond very quickly in helping us to structure a program that would work.” ~Erik Stuebe, EcoplexusEcoplexus designs, builds and operates solar facilities for city and state governments, commercial and industrial customers, multi-tenant property owners and utilities markets.In 2011, they needed help financing a solar power project with Valencia Gardens, a multi-family affordable housing residence in the Mission District of San Francisco.They were looking for a banking partner with domain experience and the responsiveness to turn funding around quickly. When they approached us, they found that we had a deep understanding of both the solar industry and the affordable housing market.We were also game to fund a smaller project—something not all banks are interested in doing. We saw the potential for an alternative energy model that could be used in other low-income communities in the U.S. and abroad. And, of course, we saw the success of Ecoplexus’s other projects—saving millions of kilowatts, acres of trees and hundreds of thousands of dollars.We’re proud to report that Valencia Gardens has become one of the largest virtual net-metered projects in the United States. It offsets 82% of the monthly electricity bills for over 260 low-income residents. A big step in changing the world, indeed.If you have a bold, game-changing idea, a business in an emerging market or need financing that requires some alternative th