Windfree Solar opens cafe on Dempster
A small crowd of community members, city staff and cafe employees gathered for a ribbon cutting ceremony on Tuesday afternoon outside Windfree Solar’s new cafe at 517 Dempster St., just a couple doors down from the Dempster and Chicago Avenue intersection.
Mayor Daniel Biss, Windfree Solar CEO Eric Heineman and Millenium Solar Electric Training CEO Christopher Williams did the honors after introducing the cafe.
“I’m just really, really happy, not only that you guys exist, but also that you’re coming to Evanston and coming here to Dempster,” Biss said. “I look forward to the coffee. I look forward to coming by and visiting, and I look forward to seeing a lot more solar panels going up around town.”
The cafe will act as a retail storefront of sorts for the Chicago-based solar energy company, where community members can pick up a coffee while also getting a customized quote for installing solar panels on their home.
The arrangement also comes with a fun incentive: anyone who buys solar panels from Windfree will also get free coffee at the cafe for life.
“I can’t think of a more perfect location for an idea such as this to take root and bear fruit,” said Fourth Ward Councilmember Jonathan Nieuwsma.
Heineman co-owns the cafe with Windfree COO Chris Lamas and Executive Vice President of Residential Construction Adam Perri. His wife, Kathryn Heineman, will manage the cafe.
The crew is still waiting to obtain food and beverage licenses from the city to run the cafe, but for now, residents can stop in any time to talk solar.
Once the cafe is up and running, it will sell drip coffee, espresso drinks, kombucha, nitro coffee and pre-made food offerings from local establishments.
Right now, it’s open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily, but extended hours are expected in the future.
Why now?
Windfree’s pre-event press release points to the passing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act as a partial impetus for opening the cafe now, because the congressional legislation is putting an end to federal tax credits for solar energy roughly seven years ahead of schedule.
Since the bill’s passage, Windfree has seen three times the demand for its solar panels, according to the release, as people look to go solar before tax credits go away.
The solar company chose Evanston for its cafe due to the city’s environmental efforts, including the recently passed Healthy Buildings Ordinance. Heineman referenced that directly during his remarks on Tuesday, lauding the city for the policy.
The ordinance requires all buildings over 20,000 square feet and city buildings over 10,000 square feet to use 100% renewable energy and eliminate onsite emissions by 2050.
“We are here because we want to support Evanstonians making that commitment to go off fossil fuels,” Heineman said.
Biss also acknowledged the threat that the Trump administration is presenting to the solar industry.
“Even in the field of renewable energy that is under such vicious attack from Washington, in part because of good policies at the State of Illinois and at the City of Evanston,” Mayor Biss said, “there are still good things happening today.”
Windfree Solar is planning to open a second cafe in Oak Park, too.