Solarize Westchester Regional Clean Energy Acceleration
Summary
In 2025, Sustainable Westchester committed to launch a three-year clean energy campaign to expand 720 new residential solar systems; facilitate the development of 12 municipal solar projects; and oversee the installation of 18 solar canopies on surface parking lots in New York. Over-reliance on high-polluting energy generators, in an area traditionally reliant on fossil-fuel-based electricity generation, raises environmental justice implications. Since increasing electricity demand is outstripping clean energy production, greater deployment of solar is needed for New York to meet its ambitious clean energy targets, in particular in the context of the slowdown in the deployment of offshore wind. Sustainable Westchester will expand its team to manage, analyze, and perform community and institutional outreach for solar. As a result, Sustainable Westchester is committed to cutting more than a million tons of direct greenhouse gas emissions, improving grid resilience, and lowering energy costs for households.
Approach
Sustainable Westchester commits to a transformative three-year clean energy campaign that will significantly expand solar deployment across Westchester County. Through this initiative, Sustainable Westchester will: support the installation of 720 new residential solar systems; facilitate the development of 12 municipal solar projects; and oversee the installation of 18 solar canopies on surface parking lots.
These efforts will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, lower energy costs for households and municipalities, and improve grid resilience. Together, they represent a strategic and equitable acceleration of the clean energy transition in Westchester County, with the potential to generate hundreds of gigawatt-hours of clean electricity and provide a scalable model for broader regional replication.
To achieve these goals, Sustainable Westchester will:
Launch a robust, county-wide “solarize” campaign to raise awareness, provide no-cost direct services—including feasibility analysis and financial modeling—connect property owners with vetted solution providers, and monitor outcomes to ensure quality and equity.
Collaborate with municipalities to streamline permitting processes for solar and battery energy storage systems (BESS) .
Identify high-potential sites for solar canopies based on surface lot configurations and proximity to grid infrastructure.
Aggregate projects to issue joint requests for proposals (RFPs) , achieving cost efficiencies in equipment and labor.
Backed by more than a decade of experience, a professional staff of 20, an annual budget of $2.5 million, and a coalition of 45 member municipalities, Sustainable Westchester is uniquely positioned to lead this initiative with institutional strength, deep community trust, and a track record of implementing scalable, inclusive clean energy programs.
Action Plan
Sustainable Westchester will implement this three-year campaign by expanding its team and outreach capacity to meet its solar deployment goals. Four new, full-time employees (FTEs) will be hired to oversee project management, technical analysis, and outreach to residents, municipalities, and institutions. These new staff will join the organization’s existing solar team and be supported by central staff responsible for marketing, partnerships, and administration.
Year 1: Foundation and Launch Hire project staff and secure necessary funding; Establish program infrastructure and refine permitting standards across member municipalities; Launch solarize campaigns for residential and municipal audiences, beginning with contractor vetting and community engagement; Identify and prioritize surface parking lots for canopy installation.
Year 2: Acceleration and Expansion Expand outreach and marketing to accelerate installations and reach historically underserved communities; Grow and evaluate the contractor network; Track progress toward 720 residential installations, 12 municipal projects, and 18 solar canopies; Measure clean energy generation and greenhouse gas reductions; adjust strategies as needed.
Year 3: Completion and Optimization Complete project goals and evaluate implementation outcomes; Refine operational strategies based on performance data; Engage regional partners to explore opportunities for replication and broader impact beyond the three-year initiative.
Background
solar canopies have been deployed on only 30 parking lots out of an estimated 12,300 lots (New York Sun Program and Westchester County Planning Department) . More than economic constraints, the primary obstacles to solar and battery deployment are inadequate information, attention, and guidance. Many property owners simply lack awareness of solar benefits and have difficulty obtaining unbiased, expert support. With sky-high electricity rates, consumers are motivated to explore solar. Reliance on the standard utility-delivered electricity is particularly problematic for the metropolitan New York City area, where the grid is 93% dependent on fossil-fuel-based generation. (NYISO Power Trends 2024) .
Ever-increasing electricity demand is far outstripping clean energy production, thereby driving continued reliance on high-polluting energy generators, typically located in poorer areas, raising serious environmental justice implications. Since 2017, electric vehicle registrations in the county have risen by an average of 48% per year, whereas solar installations have risen by 17% per year. In other words, the County is electrifying itself faster than it is greening the grid (NYSERDA NY-Sun and Clean Drive) .
U.S. electricity markets are highly regionalized, which makes a national comparison difficult. New York’s Climate Act requires the most ambitious clean energy targets in the nation. Of the key indicators, several, such as offshore wind, lag well behind their 2030 targets. But, solar energy is on pace to meet its 2030 target in New York, mainly because the economics of solar are strong. Solar will need to beat its target by a very significant margin to fill in for the likely shortfall in offshore wind. (New York Climate Act Dashboard) .
Regional collaboration to accelerate solar and battery deployment would contribute directly to statewide progress and, just as importantly, establish a replicable model with great demonstration value.
Progress Update
Partnership Opportunities
Sustainable Westchester will expand its solar team from three to seven members while increasing analytical and marketing resources. The cost in year one is approximately $930,000 with a projected three-year budget of $2,790,000. Currently $318,500 is secured through a variety of sources, resulting in roughly 34% funding for the first year. Sustainable Westchester projects the same at minimum over the remaining two years, noting that a CTA with CGI will provide much needed visibility and leverage for the project to bolster fundraising efforts. Sustainable Westchester welcomes guidance through the CGI network on communications and on the foundation funding front – including for its workforce development opportunities. For example, expanding the amount of residential solar will require expanding the
solar workforce, adding to the critical need to provide local, in-depth training, especially in disadvantaged communities, through its workforce development programs.,Sustainable Westchester is eager to share its experience with programmatic best practices and with the underlying value and impact of its regional collaboration model. Among other initiatives, Sustainable Westchester created the first and still-largest community choice aggregation program in New York State, the first residential demand-response program in New York State, and the first Sunshine-to-EV-Fast-Charging system in New York State. Through its individualized engagement with residents and businesses, Sustainable Westchester has helped thousands of clients explore and adopt clean heating and cooling solutions, and in coordination with governmental partners, Sustainable Westchester has created programming and events related to thermal energy networks and clean energy workforce development.