In celebration of Earth Day, solar energy will be on display this weekend in three Northwest Seattle neighborhoods. The Earth Day Solar Tour will feature homeowners in the Solarize Seattle: Northwest campaign that recently installed rooftop solar systems. Nonprofit Northwest SEED and partners encourage tour participants to walk, bike, or bus to solar homes in their neighborhood. Each tour will take place Sunday, April 21.
More than 65 Northwest Seattle homeowners have opted to install solar systems since the Solarize Seattle: Northwest campaign launched in January. Many are eager to share their experience, and will be available to show tour participants their systems and answer questions.
People taking part in the nonprofit-led Solarize campaign qualify for special pricing and incentives that make solar more affordable than ever. Homeowners and businesses take advantage of a group-buy discount and learn how solar works in Seattle, how it is installed, what incentives are available to bring the price down, and how low-interest financing can spread out the cost.
The Solarize Seattle: Northwest Solar Tour will feature three routes—one each in Wallingford, Phinney Ridge, and Ballard. Participants are welcome to complete the entire tour, or simply visit a few homes nearby. Earth-friendly modes of transportation are encouraged.
The self-led Phinney Ridge and Wallingford walking tours are each one mile in length, and will run from 2:00-4:00PM.
Organized in collaboration with Sustainable Ballard, the Ballard bike tour has 6-mile and 3-mile ride options. The 6-mile ride will depart Ballard Commons Park (55th & 22nd Ave NW) at noon. The 3-mile family friendly ride will depart the same location at 2:00PM.
A map of each tour route is available at www.solarizewa.org.
Solarize Seattle: Northwest is Northwest SEED’s sixth Solarize campaign, offered in partnership with Seattle City Light. Supporting organizations include the Phinney Neighborhood Association, Sustainable Ballard, Sustainable Wallingford, Sustainable Greenwood-Phinney, Sustainable Seattle, Phinney Ridge Community Council, Greenwood Community Council, Green Lake Community Council, Wallingford Community Council, and Fremont Neighborhood Council.
Registration for Solarize Seattle: Northwest is open at www.solarizewa.org through April 22. Registration is open to homeowners and small businesses in 98103, 98107, 98117, 98133, and 98177 zip codes, within City of Seattle limits. A final free educational workshop will be held on April 24. For more information, visit www.solarizewa.org.
About Northwest SEED: Northwest SEED is a non-profit organization that empowers community scale clean energy through expert guidance that combines technical support, community education and practical implementation. www.nwseed.org.