Solar tour in Cresco, Oct. 6
Wed, 10/03/2018 - 1:12pm
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Cresco - Three local solar owners are inviting people to visit their solar installations on Oct. 6 to learn how the sun can help reduce your energy costs. The event is being coordinated locally by the Howard County Energy District, and is part of the National Solar Tour. All three sites will be open from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Oct 6.
Participating solar owners are: James Wolfe and Janis Rockabrand (118 6th Avenue East), Dave Fritcher and Howard County Mutual (705 2nd Avenue SE) and City of Cresco / Solar Pro (at the old water tower).
At each site, the owners will show the parts of a solar installation and discuss how they made the decision to install solar and how it has worked out financially.
The sites are different from each other: The first is a residence on a tree-lined street with an unusual east/west facing roof installation.
The second (at Howard County Mutual on Highway 9 East) is a business with a larger ground-mounted south-facing set of panels. The manager, Dave Fritcher, also has solar at his farm. “I would be happy to talk with farmers who are considering solar,” he said. “It has worked out very well for me.”
The third site on City of Cresco land under the old water tower but owned by Solar Pro LLC, is another south-facing ground-mount. “We wanted to have three different types of locations and owners so that people could visit a site that would provide the most relevant information for them,” said Brett Daley, vice-chairman of the Howard County Energy District.
Maybe you’re just curious about solar power but not really interested in installing it? “That’s fine, too,” commented Amy Bouska, the HCED chair. “At the Howard County Mutual and City of Cresco sites, you can touch a solar panel and see what they look like up close. Just drop by.”
The National Solar Tour, which is billed as “the largest grassroots solar, renewable energy, and sustainable living event in the nation,” is sponsored nationally by the American Solar Energy Society and Solar United Neighbors. For more information on the national tour, visit nationalsolartour.org. In case of poor weather, check HCEDIowa on Facebook.
