Stephanie Farinelli and her husband never thought they would buy their first home in a subdivision. Then they found Whisper Valley, an enclave nearly 20 miles outside downtown Austin, Texas.

Representatives from Boston-based climate solutions nonprofit HEET, and Framingham’s Networked Geothermal Pilot Project met with Newton’s Public Facilities Committee Wednesday to discuss geothermal energy options for the city.

On a warm morning last August, a small crew of construction workers drove a 30-foot-tall drill through the surface of a parking lot in Framingham. As the drill bit, which was cooled by a steady stream of water, broke through the asphalt and ground through the rocky subsurface, it sent a stream of mud spewing from the hole.

With the help of a $50,000 grant, the town will explore the feasibility of a geothermal heating and cooling system for the proposed town campus project.

The Town of Arlington has won a $50,000 grant to evaluate potential sites for a networked geothermal project, according to a news release from the town's Department of Planning and Community Development.

A divided state commission is calling for more aggressive steps to shift Massachusetts away from its reliance on natural gas for energy, but it’s not clear if state lawmakers will take up any of the proposed changes.