Rochester officials spent some time in the hot sun Tuesday to celebrate solar energy and show how it is helping some homeowners and businesses make a difference.
They gathered at a house on Highland Avenue, the first residential installation of the solar panels this year under the Solarize the Flower City effort.
That's a program run by a non-profit organization called ROCSPOT, and its CEO Susan Spencer says last year 28 solar installations were accomplished in the southeastern part of the Rochester.
This year they are expanding throughout the city as well as parts of Brighton and Irondequoit.
“The number has been growing significantly; our installers are so busy that they are about two months out in scheduling the installations, so we expect to see that number quadruple, at least, this year.”
“We see solar as something that can benefit urban, suburban and rural residents, and we really wanted to help jumpstart solar installations within the city limits themselves,” Spencer told WXXI News.
Spencer says with grants and incentives it can cut the cost of solar installation by 60 to 75 percent; and the solar panels can pay for themselves in electricity savings in 5 to 10 years.
The solarize project is also making a push to let businesses know about the options available to them, and Spencer says for the larger commercial projects, the cost savings can be accomplished in a shorter time span.
