Mountain Village partners with Solar United Neighbors to launch solar power co-op; offer $2,500 incentive rebate
The Town of Mountain Village is excited to announce a new solar energy co-op incentive for property owners in partnership with the non-profit group Solar United Neighbors, which facilitates neighborhood solar co-ops across the country.
This new partnership invites Mountain Village property owners to join a solar co-op and the first 20 properties to sign up and see solar arrays installed will receive a $2,500 incentive rebate. Any participating deed-restricted property will receive up to $5,000 for going solar.
“The solar co-op framework is an innovative way to promote solar adoption throughout the community because it both creates momentum behind solar, as well as helps drive down costs for participants,” said Mountain Village Green Team Vice-Chair and Town Council Member Marti Prohaska. “We are thankful to have the expertise of Solar United Neighbors to guide us through the process, as they have helped initiate solar success stories in many other communities.”
The co-op is free to join upfront and open to Mountain Village homeowners or business owners who want to learn more about solar energy.
“We are excited to launch the first Mountain Village solar co-op, partnering with the Town of Mountain Village,” said Bryce Carter, Colorado program director for SUN. “We’ve helped over 100 families and businesses go solar on the Western Slope and in our mountain communities, building economic resilience across the region. We look forward to growing this momentum and commend Mountain Village’s leadership by helping expand the accessibility of the benefits of solar through their incentive rebate, especially for deed-restricted housing.”
Under the guidance of Solar United Neighbors (SUN), the co-op will then be able to leverage its numbers to purchase individual solar energy systems at a competitive price. SUN facilitates a competitive bidding process out to contracts to select a single company to complete installations. Joining the co-op does not obligate members to purchase solar, however, the first 20 to sign contracts for installation will be able to take advantage of the $2,500 financial incentive.
The Telluride Mountain Village Owners Association has partnered with the town to fund this unique incentive program.
“The two existing incentive programs that TMVOA contributes to, Cedar Shake Rebate and Defensible Space/Wildfire Mitigation, continue to be a great success,” said TMVOA Director of Operations and Finance Garrett Brafford. “We are excited about another financial partnership on a residential member-focused program with the Town that is supporting renewable energy efforts in our community.”
During the development of this new program, funds were set aside specifically to help deed-restricted homeowners take advantage of going solar.
“While going solar has long-term cost savings benefits, installation costs can be prohibitive for many households,” Prohaska said. “The additional incentive for deed-restricted homes is designed to help families that may have a harder time swallowing the initial price tag of solar installation. Between the Mountain Village's contribution, current federal tax credits, and the SMPA incentive, it may be the perfect time to finally go solar.”
Mountain Village Business Development and Sustainability Director Zoe Dohnal added that the deadline to join the co-op is May 15. There will be an informational Zoom meeting about the program on April 1.
“We are thrilled to be offering such a robust incentive program to Mountain Village property owners in partnership with TMVOA and Solar United Neighbors. We can’t wait to see folks go solar this year thanks to this unique incentive,” Dohnal said.
To learn more about this new incentive program, sign up for the co-op or sign up for the April 1 informational session, please visit townofmountainvillage.com/solar.
