As the colorful leaves tell us fall is rolling on the third year of Grow Solar St. Louis comes to a close culminating in homeowners and small businesses of 34 properties adding solar to their roofs. Combined with 21 Metro East properties, these installations will add nearly 445 kWs of renewable energy to the Gateway region. Grow Solar St. Louis is a group-buy, solar education program that makes navigating the complicated solar industry easier and more affordable for individuals with its group-buy discount and Power Hour educational sessions. These individuals helped the programs earn a 1.5% rebate, saving an average of $400, on their solar installations. In total, Grow Solar St. Louis’ newly solarized homeowners will be able to see an average of $768 of savings on their utility bills in the first year alone - putting money back in their pockets while deploying clean, renewable energy!
During the third year of the Grow Solar St. Louis program, nearly 275 people from St. Louis City, County, and St. Charles County attended a free Power Hour, an online educational webinar. Power Hours make navigating the journey to solar easier, by helping individuals learn what you need to know before adding solar to your home, the science of solar, and importance of energy efficiency tips to make the most out of your energy dollars. After attending the Power Hour, interested participants were able to receive a free site assessment from program installer, StraightUp Solar, to determine if solar was right for their homes.
The successes of Grow Solar St. Louis are only amplified by its partnership with sister program, Grow Solar Metro East which began in 2016 in Godfrey, IL with the help of local organizations and a partnership between Lewis and Clark Community College and the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA). In 2019, the EarthWays Center of the Missouri Botanical Garden partnered with Washington University in St. Louis and MREA to pilot a similar program in St. Louis City and County. In its third year in St. Louis, the Grow Solar St. Louis program continues to be supported by municipal partners including the City of Brentwood, Creve Coeur, Clayton, Richmond Heights, St. Louis, University City, and Webster Groves.