The city of Lowell sought to make solar projects more attractive for developers and homeowners when it altered its permit fee schedule to accommodate solar panel projects; and the first large solar project is preparing to take advantage of the change.

The Coalition for a Better Acre (CBA), a local community development corporation, recently received approval from the Historic Board to install more than 840 solar panels on housing units in their North Canal Apartment complex.

The cost of the solar project is estimated to be $1.1 million. With the new permit fees established by the City Council, CBA will only be required to pay $500 rather than more than $3,300 in permit fees that would have been charged under the prior fee schedule, a savings of 84 percent.

The Lowell City Council voted to adopt a new solar panel permit fee in January, in a move to promote this type of renewable energy project. The new fee schedule exempts solar panels from the standard electrical permit fee of $3 per $1,000 plus any applicable building permit fees, and instead establishes flat fees for residential and commercial solar panel projects. The CBA project will be the first to take advantage of the new fee structure.

"Lowell is 100 percent committed to the role of being a green community," said City Manager Bernard Lynch. "Incentivizing sustainable energy projects through targeted permit fee reductions is a natural step for us in that role."

Lowell was in the first round of green community cities designed by the Department of Energy Resources in 2010. As a green community, the city has committed to promoting sustainability initiatives including implementation of the state’s optional Stretch Building Code, updating its master plan to incorporate sustainability goals, and partnering with Ameresco to improve aging infrastructure and capture significant energy and operational savings, according to a statement.