A new dawn for local solar industry growth

FORT COLLINS – On Feb. 24, staff at The Atmosphere Conservancy barely had time to celebrate their latest prospective solar project before things took a dark turn.

The Fort Collins-based nonprofit facilitates solar and renewable energy projects for other nonprofit entities, including universities and housing authorities. TAC had just signed an agreement to move forward with the installation of 56 kilowatts of photovoltaic solar panels on the roofs of an affordable-housing complex for retired farmers in Milliken. Similar solar installations have helped reduce low-income residents’ utility bills and paid out savings to housing authorities through Xcel Energy’s Solar Rewards program,…