Mountain Village: Offering Property Owners Deep Savings on Solar

11 Jul Mountain Village: Offering Property Owners Deep Savings on Solar

For more information about the Town of Mountain Village’s solar panel initiative, please contact Drew Harrington at dharrington@mtnvillage.org  or please visit our website at townofmountainvillage.com/solar-energy.

The Town of Mountain Village is encouraging Mountain Village residents and businesses owners to harness the power of the sun and take advantage of significant savings when they install solar panels on their homes or businesses in Mountain Village.

As part of its robust incentive program, Mountain Village is offering a 40 cent per watt rebate when property owners install solar panels on their homes. There is a $2,000 maximum rebate per meter for residents (5,000 watts maximum); $4,000 maximum rebate per meter for business owners (10,000 watts maximum).

The average home will install a 4,000-watt system which equates to a $1,600 rebate from the Town of Mountain Village.

Mountain Village Building Official Drew Harrington points out that property owners can benefit twice on their energy savings if they install solar on any project to offset exterior energy use, like a snow-melted driveway.

“For example, if you install a 2,000-watt solar photovoltaic system on your home, then there would be no renewable energy mitigation program fee paid to the town for installation of a 2,000 square foot snow melted driveway,” Harrington said. “One thousand square feet is exempt, and the two-kilowatt system would entirely offset the $7,700 fee for the additional 1,000 square foot driveway typically paid to the town. That is an additional $7,777 savings under this scenario,” Harrington continued.

So in addition to the rebates, residents can also save on the renewable energy mitigation fee payment associated with exterior energy use.

In Mountain Village, outdoor energy use like snow-melts, hot tubs, or pools with new construction projects or building permits are charged a fee for their use to offset energy and carbon consumption. The fee goes into a restricted fund that the town uses for renewable energy projects.

Owners can also combine this with San Miguel Power Association’s solar rebate of $.25 per watt and the Solar Investment Tax Credit which allows property owners to deduct 30 percent of the cost of installing a solar energy system from your federal taxes. That applies to both residential and commercial systems and there is no cap on its value.

“One of the most important factors in preserving the beauty of our corner of the world is reducing the use of fossil fuels,” said Mountain Village Mayor Pro Tem Dan Caton. “This program makes that economical as well! Depending on your situation, the combination of these rebates and incentives can move us past the tipping point and make it possible to help ourselves while we help others.”