The Grow Solar Little Traverse Initiative has announced a bulk purchase program to help businesses and homeowners. This allows property owners to access competitive prices for solar installations through the power of volume purchasing.
This is an official press release brought to you by the Grow Solar Little Traverse Initiative and MyNorth News Service.
The sun is shining for homeowners and business owners throughout the Little Traverse Bay area, as the Grow Solar Little Traverse program commences this August. The program will allow individual home and commercial property owners to access competitive prices for solar installations through the power of volume purchasing.
Michigan Interfaith Power & Light, Groundwork Center for Resilient Communities, and the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) are supporting a bulk solar group purchase program for residents and businesses located in the Little Traverse Bay Area; this covers Petoskey, Harbor Springs, and parts of Emmet and Charlevoix Counties. The program will provide residents and businesses with the opportunity to invest in their own high-quality renewable energy solar installations with potential savings on installation cost, while also helping businesses reach sustainability goals.
“There are problems with the way we typically buy electricity,” said Peter Murphy, solar program director with the Midwest Renewable Energy Association. “We have very little control over rate increases, we aren’t building ownership, and polluting fossil fuels still make up the main source of electricity in the Midwest. Solar mitigates or solves each of these problems, and this program makes solar more affordable than ever.”
According to Jim Lively, Climate and Environment Program Director at Groundwork Center for Resilient Communities, “Solar power is a great investment that pays off after only a few years, and helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions. With this program, we’re expecting to reduce the upfront costs even more through a coordinated group purchase, and hope to see a surge of solar customers in the Petoskey area.”
“We think for environmental sustainability and peace on a global scale, and for quality of life and resiliency of communities locally, it’s important that we move beyond dependence on fossil fuels. Solar systems are becoming more affordable and will be an important part of our energy portfolio as we move toward a more sustainable, peaceful and just future,” says Larry Dyer, program partner with Michigan Interfaith Power & Light.
Over the next few months, MREA will provide free, one-hour-long educational sessions for members of the public. These “Solar Power Hour” webinars will provide prospective participants with information about how solar energy works. MREA representatives will also answer questions. The program’s website, LittleTraverse.GrowSolar.org, includes a sign-up form on which area residents and business owners can elect to receive an estimate or general program updates and Solar Power Hour announcements.
The program is administered by the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) at no cost to the community. This type of program has been successful in other jurisdictions in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri.
The Solar Power Hour Schedule for August & September
August 5 | 7:30 p.m., via Zoom
August 12 | 6:00 p.m., Coveyou Scenic Farm
September 18 | Solar home tour sponsored by the Northern Lower Michigan League of Women Voters, starting location TBD
September 21 | 7:00 p.m., Petoskey District Library Carnegie Building
Interested in being a co-host? Email taylorb@midwestrenew.org for more information.
