Plan to solar power 100 low-income homes gets Ypsilanti city support

YPSILANTI, MI – Ypsilanti leaders threw support behind a proposed project seeking to install solar panels on more than 100 homes in a low-income neighborhood.

SolarYpsi called on the city to back the project, help secure grant funding and run the bidding process to select a solar installation contractor in a Feb. 18 presentation by founder Dave Strenski.

The Ypsilanti City Council unanimously voted for the city manager to apply for a state renewable energy grant and for Ypsilanti to act as the fiduciary on Tuesday, March 4.

Up to $4,875,000 may be available under the program by the Michigan Public Services Commission.

Upfront costs often prevent low-income households from taking advantage of tax credits and incentives for renewable energy projects. Grassroots group SolarYpsi wants to pay for solar installation under the plan presented on Feb. 18.

The project would benefit the climate, the community, local economic development and equity, Strenski previously said, and would save residents about $50 monthly.

The full project of 200 homes would cost an estimated $2 million but could be initiated with 50 homes and an investment of $500,000, according to the proposal. It would be funded through a mixture of public and private grants, Strenski said.

However, nothing happens until the project has the funding, he added.

He also proposed pooling the roughly $50,000 remaining in the city’s $80,000 Grace Sweeney Solar Rebate Program into the project. Ypsilanti resident Grace Sweeney – who died in 2021 – left $73,149 to SolarYpsi, which passed it on to the city, adding additional funds. The program is currently first-come, first-serve, offering $2,000 rebates to 40 homes.

The project would target owner-occupied homes in a Federal Opportunity Zone south of Michigan Avenue. Opportunity zones are low-income communities that qualify for some tax benefits to promote economic development.

Strenski then narrowed the project down to 200 homes by running addresses through Google Sunroof. The program ranks the homes by solar energy generation potential.

The majority of solar power is being installed in large commercial solar arrays and on middle- to upper-income household roof tops, according to the presentation. More solar should be added to low-income homes, where residents need it most, Strenski said.

Strenski has installed solar panels throughout Ypsilanti, including St. James Church, Metropolitan Memorial Baptist Church and Parkridge Community Center.

A larger scale project means a cheaper price per home, as opposed to installing solar home-by-home.

After the 30% federal renewable energy tax credit, Strenski estimates it would cost approximately $10,500 to hire a contractor to outfit an individual typical Michigan home with 100% solar power. That’s about $3 per watt, he said.

A project of this scale, Strenski hopes, would drop the price to about $2 per watt or $7,000 total after the tax credit. The project would still budget about $10,000 per home in case the roof needs repairs or replacement before installation, Strenski said.

Strenski said the solar power installed would be tied to the grid. Excess power would be fed back to the grid and not stored in a battery on site.

He said a project of this scale could create many jobs, adding to the host of economic benefits.

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