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Babcock Ranch Powered Only By the Sun?

The planned Babcock Ranch will be powered entirely by solar power, the town’s developer has announced. Kitson and Partners will build $300 million worth of solar panels on a 400-acre site in the town-from-scratch, which is being constructed on 18,000 acres straddling Lee and Charlotte counties. The solar arrays will be owned and operated by Florida Power & Light. Initially, they will generate 75 megawatts. Developer Syd Kitson says the power produced will exceed that needed by the 45,000 residents expected to live and work there. Babcock Ranch will be the first town in the world to get all of its power needs from the sun, he says.

Babcock Ranch
Babcock Ranch will be the first town to get all its power needs from the sun, Kitson says.

Kitson has pledged to use green building practices and technologies in developing the property, which will include residential, retail and commercial structures. Kitson announced the solar project in Washington, D.C., with representatives of FPL, the Audubon Society, World Wildlife Fund and the Sierra Club.