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Home My WebLink AboutItem V_Solar Group Buy application guide 2020 midwestrenew.org/solargroupbuy | 1 Would you like to bring a Solar Group Buy to your community? Please use this application guide to prepare your responses to our online application. Applications will be accepted online only (here). Questions? Email Solar Program Manager Peter Murphy at peterm@midwestrenew.org. Guide to the Community Application for Grow Solar (Solarize / Group Buy) program This form has four sections, and will help MREA get a better sense of the potential your community has for a successful solar group buy ("Solarize") program. The first section tells us a little more about who is applying for the program, and what the community is like. We'll use the term "POJ" to refer to "Participating Organizations or Jurisdictions." POJs are the organizations and jurisdictions that you anticipate working closely with MREA to help make the solar group buy successful. The level of support of each POJ varies, and some POJs are much more hands-on than others. Put simply, we're looking for POJs to act as enthusiastic and energetic local champions of the program. 1) Email address 2) Primary Contact Name 3) Primary Contact Phone number 4) Primary Contact's Organization or Jurisdiction 5) Participating Organization(s) and/or Jurisdiction(s) (POJs) (please list) 6) Type of Community ❏ County ❏ City ❏ Group of Cities ❏ Group of Counties ❏ Other: 7) What is the overall population in this community? midwestrenew.org/solargroupbuy | 2 8) What is the homeownership rate in this community? (This can be determined using American FactFinder from the US Census Bureau: Community Facts>Housing>General Housing Characteristics>Owner Occupied [expressed as a percent]) 9) Please list the main utility providers in your area and the price per kilowatt hour ($/kWh) most residents pay in each utility territory. In most cases, this is easy to determine by looking at a bill or calling the utility directly. 10) Have any of the proposing communities been awarded SolSmart designation? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 11) If Yes, which communities and what level of designation did they receive? 12) Has a solar group buy been done in any of these communities already? ❏ Yes ❏ No 13) If Yes, please describe. 14) Do you intend for this group buy program to happen more than once in the coming years? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 15) Are you aware of available grant funding for a group buy in your community? ❏ Yes ❏ No 16) If Yes, please describe. midwestrenew.org/solargroupbuy | 3 Jurisdictional Support Support from jurisdictions is critical to the success of any solar group buy program. This section will help determine the level of support and ways we can expect local jurisdictions to support the solar group buy. 17) Have any of the Participating Jurisdictions passed any solar-friendly legislation (i.e. alignment with Paris Climate Accords; passage of % renewable goal in comprehensive plan; etc.)? Please describe. 18) Please describe the solar permitting process and solar permitting fees for each of the Participating Jurisdictions. 19) Please list contacts (name, email, and phone number, if known) at the permitting office for each of the Participating Jurisdictions. 20) Are any of the Participating Jurisdictions supporting the program through passage of a resolution? (An example can be found here: goo.gl/5MWV6V ) ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 21) If Yes, which Participating Jurisdictions? 22) Are any Participating Jurisdictions willing to contribute staff time on a regular/ongoing basis for the course of the program (around 6 months)? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 23) If Yes, please describe. 24) Are any of the Participating Jurisdictions willing to support by communicating about the group buy to their residents? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 25) If Yes, please describe. 26) Are any of the Participating Jurisdictions willing to support by offering public space as a host venue for Solar Power Hour education sessions? Presentations typically last an hour, with 30 minutes built in on either side for set up and take down. Ideally, host venues have private space midwestrenew.org/solargroupbuy | 4 so attendees can hear, and have enough seating for an average attendance of 15- 30 individuals. ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 27) If Yes, please describe. Local organizations In addition to local jurisdictions, we often partner with local nonprofit organizations to help spread the word and in some cases co-administer the program. This section will describe the local organization(s) with whom we should partner to make the solar group buy successful. If no local organizations exist, or partnering with nonprofit organizations presents a problem for the jurisdictions that will be supportive, please let us know. 28) Are local organizations willing to help promote the group buy? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 29) If Yes, please describe. 30) Are local organizations willing to contribute staff time on a regular/ongoing basis for the course of the program (around 6 months)? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 31) If Yes, please describe. 32) Are local community spaces (libraries, education centers, faith groups, art galleries, senior centers, coffee shops, restaurants, bookstores, bars) willing to serve as host venues for Solar Power Hours? Presentations typically last an hour, with 30 minutes built in on either side for set up and take down. Ideally, host venues have private space so attendees can hear, and have enough seating for an average attendance of 15-30 individuals. ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 33) If Yes, please describe. midwestrenew.org/solargroupbuy | 5 34) Are local community spaces willing to promote the program with yard signs, posters, postcards, etc.? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 35) If Yes, please describe. Communications This section will help us determine how we will go about informing as many local residents as possible about the program. We've found that a grass-roots approach, including physical posters, yard signs, handbills, etc. has been more effective than traditional advertising channels like billboards and paid ads. Please let us know what channels will be available to get the word out about the solar group buy. We'll use the term "POJ" to refer to "Participating Organizations or Jurisdictions." POJs are the organizations and jurisdictions that you anticipate working closely with MREA to help make the solar group buy successful. The level of support of each POJ varies, and some POJs are much more hands-on than others. Put simply, we're looking for POJs to act as enthusiastic and energetic local champions of the program. 36) What local press outlets (print news, web news, TV news, radio stations, etc.) exist? 37) If any relationships exist between POJs and local press outlets, please describe. We typically aim for wide press coverage at least three times throughout the course of the approximately 6 month program. 38) Are POJs and/or community spaces willing to promote the program through electronic channels (social media, email blast, etc.)? ❏ Yes ❏ No ❏ Maybe 39) If Yes, please describe. 40) Please describe any farmers markets or similar style events that take place locally where we should have a presence. midwestrenew.org/solargroupbuy | 6 41) What other channels exist for mass communication about the group buy program, other than traditional advertising channels like billboards? Almost done! Just a couple more questions. 42) Anything else you'd like us to know? 43) How did you hear about us? ❏ Web search ❏ At an event/conference ❏ Facebook / Twitter / Other Social Media ❏ Newspaper article ❏ Other: