Want to get a piece of the solar power action, but don’t have enough sun — or funding — to set up an entire system on your own? A community solar garden might be just what you’re looking for.

Community solar gardens provide energy consumers (that’s us) a way to tap the sun’s energy whatever our circumstances by helping to finance a centrally located system that then credits our electric bills for the amount of power produced. Interest in community solar is booming in Minnesota right now as Xcel Energy works to meet the requirement it support community solar garden development in the state.

Could buying a subscription to a community solar garden be a smart move for you? Might the Mahtomedi area be a good location for a future facility? Watch this space in the weeks ahead for news about an informational meeting being planned for this spring to explore those questions and more.

Learn more about community solar gardens from the Clean Energy Resource Teams and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.