Wayland Couple Signs First Solarize Mass Contract

Wayland homeowners Mark and Kim Reichelt are the first couple to take advantage of this year's Solarize Mass program that will make going solar a bit easier and less expensive for residences and businesses.

In April, representatives from Wayland, Sudbury and Lincoln joined representatives from 14 other communities to accept Solarize Mass grants intended to help the state's designated Green Communities encourage "the adoption of small scale solar photovaltaic (PV) by deploying a coordinated education, marketing and outreach effort, combined with a tiered pricing structure that provides increased savings as more residences and businesses in the community go solar."

Wayland, Sudbury and Lincoln were accepted to the Solarize Mass program on a single grant and, therefore, have a single solar provider lined up to do the installation. A committee of local volunteers, with input from state officials, selected Astrum Solar as the designated installer for Wayland, Sudbury and Lincoln.

In a Mass Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) press release, Kim Reichelt said that her family had been considering solar for some time, and the Solarize Mass program made this the right time to move forward.

"We are very excited to be installing solar panels on our home," Reichelt said. "We looked into doing it a few years ago, but since then there have been significant improvements in both the price and the technology. With the discounts from the Solarize program, the installation makes financial sense.  Even with all our trees, our installation is going to pay for itself in about seven years.

"I hope to see solar panels going up all over town!"

For more information about the Solarize Mass program, contact one of the solar coaches for the towns. Wayland's coaches are Kaat Vander Straeten, who can be reached at kaat@transitionwayland.org, and Anne Harris, who can be reached at solarizeway@gmail.com.

The coaches will also be at various local events, including the Summer Farmers' Market at Russell's Garden Center and the Wayland Transfer Station on Saturdays.

Online, more information is available at www.solarizelsw.com.

"And to skip all of that and get the ball rolling," Vander Straeten said, "contact Astrum at 1-800-903-6130 or leave your email at www.astrumsolar.com. Make sure to tell them straightaway that you're with Solarize Wayland in order to get the program's special pricing."

Vander Straeten explained that a phone call to Astrum will involve a short interview during which a representative will make a preliminary assessment of your site using Google Maps to determine if you're solar eligible.

"If your site is eligible, Troy - Wayland's own Astrum rep - will call you and schedule a site visit," Vander Straeten said. "During this visit, Astrum takes
measurements of area and sun - you don't need to be home for this. Next up will be a detailed proposal, complete with system specs, cost, pay-back and a wide array of financing choices."

Editor's Note: The source of the press release cited above has been clarified.