Community Solar has arrived in the Town of Aurora! Officially dubbed “Aurora Solar
Savings “ this unique program gives every town resident the opportunity to support
local, renewable energy without the hassle and expense of having to own solar panels.
It costs nothing to join and nothing to maintain. Members save money on their utility
bills- all while supporting the development of energy saving infrastructure in our town.
“What's the catch? This sounds too good to be true.” When a program promises
guaranteed savings with no risk or expense, it understandably raises doubts, but the
town’s partnership with PowerMarket is part of a commitment to bring reliable and
beneficial programs to all in a highly regulated, legit format. Residents can sign up and
cancel without cost.
• When you subscribe, you are assigned to a solar project in NYS. You then receive a
share of that energy in the form of credits applied to your NYSEG bill in proportion to
your household usage. Savings of up to 10% will be directly applied to your electric
bill each month.
• You don’t have to own a home. Renters, apartment dwellers, churches, condo
owners, & small business owners can join. The reason NYS supports community
solar programs is so people who don't own their roof can still benefit from clean
energy.
• Your account & billing with NYSEG will stay the same. The only change you’ll notice
is an extra line on your utility bill stating your monthly discount. There will be no loss
in service no matter what the sun is doing because you’re still connected to the grid.
• Some of you may be thinking: “I already have a solar energy provider, so I don’t
need this”. Even If you’re signed up with a renewable ESCO (Energy Services
Company) nothing will change. You can have both at the same time.
• However, if you have solar panels on your roof or property the rules don’t let you
“double-dip”.
• PowerMarket is the name of the company that manages the subscription process,
connects subscribers directly to solar projects, and handles all customer support.
Already, Aurora Solar Savings has been such a success that the first offering of
available slots with a solar farm in Dickinson, NY have been filled! However, residents
may still sign up for additional solar projects that will be coming online in 2025.
“Then why should I sign up now? Can’t I just wait until the new farms are up and
running?” If you wait you’ll be too late! These are first come/first serve opportunities
and other town’s are offering their residents the same- we want Auroran’s to be able totake advantage by getting on the wait list now. The openings fill up fast. If we don’t take
them other towns will.
Best of all, the Town of Aurora will receive thousands of dollars in grant funding from
NYS and NYSERDA for additional clean energy projects based on the number of
people who join. To date, town residents who already enrolled have earned $55K in
grants that will be used to make our town cleaner and greener! That’s just the
beginning. If we reach 160 sign-ups, that amount will more than double. Let’s keep
those dollars coming to Aurora.
Visit powermarket.io/aurora.html, or call 877-762-0507 to sign up. There’s nothing to
lose and much to be gained for you and our town by joining Aurora Solar Savings!
-By Susan Russell ACES Board of Directors &
Town of Aurora's Climate Smart Community Task Force
Comments