First Solarize Fairbanks Installations Complete

The first solar arrays have been installed as part of Solarize Fairbanks' community effort to make going solar easy and affordable. More than 250 participants are considering installations by the end of the summer.

The first installation in the Goldstream Valley campaign area was at the house of Bob and Sharon Baker, who said they had been “wanting to learn about solar power for quite a long time [and] with the incentives from the group discount and the federal tax credit still available, it was now or never, so we took the plunge.” By bringing neighbors together to purchase and install solar photovoltaic systems on their homes and businesses, Solarize Fairbanks has reduced the cost of installing solar panels by up to 20%.
Solarize Fairbanks core team member Jamie Hansen, the principal consultant at Information Insights, said summer 2020 is a great time to go solar.

“If you purchase and install a solar array as part of Solarize Fairbanks, you’ll get a 10-20% bulk discount overall,” she said. “On top of that, 2020 is the last year to receive a 26% federal tax credit for installing solar on your home or business.”

The credit is being phased out and will drop to zero for homeowners by 2022.

Solarize Fairbanks is accepting participants until Aug. 1. Solarize Fairbanks installers are contracted to install more than 322 kilowatts of solar generation for over 50 homes and businesses in the Fairbanks North Star Borough.

The campaign is a coalition effort by Information Insights, the Northern Alaska Environmental Center, the Alaska Center, the Alaska Center for Energy and Power, the Cold Climate Housing Research Center, the Fairbanks Climate Action Coalition, and Native Movement.

For more information, email solarizefairbanks@gmail.com.

 

Todd Paris said everything "seemed to come together this summer to push us to finally get it [solar installation] done." Aerial photo by Todd Paris.