Longmont has had some special moments as a community. And this one may really leave you with a warm glow.  

That’s because Longmont now has Iluminar, its first-ever community solar program, serving about 30 Longmont households. If you’re not familiar with community solar, Iluminar has two main purposes:

• Help people be part of solar energy who either normally couldn’t put solar panels on their roof, or choose not to, and  
• Give some extra utility bill assistance to households who need it

How does that work? The City generates solar power on the roof of its Waste Services building on Martin Street. The electric customers who subscribe to Iluminar then share that power virtually, covering their electric usage for the month with clean renewable energy.  

Half of those subscribers already get help from Longmont CAReS, which gives utility bill rebates to households in need. In addition to getting a share of the Martin Street solar energy, those customers also get a 20% electric bill discount. That’s paid for by a 20% premium from the other half of Iluminar subscribers, who get to help a neighbor while supporting local solar energy, all without having to pay for their own panels.  

If you’d like to find out more, check out our Iluminar web page, which also includes a short video about Iluminar. And as more Iluminar sites come online, we’ll add that information to the page as well.  

So yes, it’s a moment for Longmont to celebrate.  

In fact, we’re beaming.