Mundelein earns award for advancing solar energy growth
At the June 28 village board meeting, the village of Mundelein received a Silver designation from the national SolSmart program for making it faster, easier, less restrictive and more affordable for homes and businesses to utilize solar energy.
This designation acknowledges the bold steps Mundelein has taken to encourage solar energy growth and remove obstacles to solar development. For companies looking to expand, a SolSmart Silver designation is a signal that the village of Mundelein is "open for solar business."
"Mundelein is honored to have earned the Silver SolSmart recognition. Being formally recognized in this manner helps to position our community as a leader in sustainability and renewable energy. We're proud of the steps we have taken and continue to take to make it easier for our residents to utilize solar energy. I applaud the board of trustees, the planning and zoning commission, the building department and the community development team for working together to make renewable energy a priority. This award required a great deal of teamwork and I'm proud to be in the company of other forward thinking, like-minded municipalities to make notable strides forward regarding solar energy," Mayor Steve Lentz said.
Factors that contributed to receiving this award include efforts by the community development staff to revise and update Mundelein's zoning codes, the planning and zoning commission researched and made solar recommendations, and the building department initiated training to better understand proper solar installations. Mundelein also created website page dedicated to sustainable energy and solar energy specifically, outlined solar energy guidelines on the site, and the building department trained in best practices for solar and renewable energy.
SolSmart is led by The Solar Foundation and the International City/County Management Association and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Office. More than 380 cities, counties and small towns have achieved SolSmart designation since the program launched in 2016.
As a SolSmart designee, the village of Mundelein is helping solar companies greatly reduce the cost of installations and pass those savings on to consumers. This allows even more local homes and businesses to obtain affordable, clean and reliable electricity through solar energy. Additionally, the Sol Smart designation encourages solar companies to choose Mundelein as home base, thus driving economic development and creating local jobs.
To receive designation, cities and counties make changes to their local processes to reduce the time and money it takes to install a solar energy system. This includes evaluating local permitting processes, as well as planning and zoning procedures. SolSmart designees also develop innovations in areas such as market development and finance.
SolSmart uses objective criteria to award communities points based on the actions they take to reduce barriers to solar energy development. Communities that take sufficient action are designated either gold, silver or bronze.
As part of the SolSmart program, a team of national experts provides no-cost technical assistance to help communities achieve designation. All municipalities, counties and regional organizations are eligible to join the SolSmart program and receive this technical assistance.
Interested communities can learn more at SolSmart.org.
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