Solar Panels In Occupy Madison Tiny Villages To Fulfill Old Goal

MADISON, WI—Running on solar power has always been part of the plan for Occupy Madison.

And now, as part of Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway’s federal COVID-19 aid proposal, that dream will be fulfilled for the housing nonprofit. Occupy Madison, best known for its tiny house villages, has long prioritized economic and environmental sustainability, Bruce Wallbaum, one of the nonprofit's co-founders, told Patch.

The nonprofit will receive $150,000 as part of the disbursement of federal funds by the city, which will cover the entire project. Two solar arrays will be installed atop the main buildings—which are used for shared facilities and gift shops—of each respective village. The two villages are located at 304 North Third Street and 1901 Aberg Avenue.

With the Mayor's proposal approved by the Common Council last Tuesday, Wallbaum said Occupy Madison volunteers are meeting with city staff in late July with hopes that the panels will be installed this fall.

The money is part of a $47.2 million federal aid package that aims to help the city recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Over $8.6 million of this is expected to go toward support for homelessness, which includes the solar project as well as a new men’s shelter, unsheltered support and funding for the Salvation Army of Dane County.

Additional parts of the package include, $2,6 million will go toward violence prevention and youth engagement, $6.7 million toward affordable housing, $1 million for emerging needs and $3.9 million for economic development.

Wallbaum said the Occupy Madison Board was approached by staff from the city in late spring to put together a budget and plan. He explained it's an ideal project for Madison and the nonprofit because it helps the environment and addresses housing.

“This really fits well in our model,” Wallbaum said. “It not only helps the greater community, because we're offsetting CO2, obviously but it helps Occupy because one of the real challenges is how do we manage the long-term sustainability of the villages.”

Wallbaum said switching to solar will help Occupy Madison save roughly $8,000 per year in energy costs. Any sort of savings will go toward the nonprofit's long-term goal: starting another village and getting unhoused folks into housing.

Since the early days of Occupy Madison, having a solar array was always a part of the vision.

The project was something that had to be put off because the solar costs a lot of money up front to install, Wallbaum said. And, most of the nonprofit's money comes from fundraising and micro-enterprises—such as plant sales from the greenhouse.

“We did most of this without any government money,” Wallbaum said, referring to building the houses. "So you have to raise money because you have electricity costs and you have overhead. This project will help the monthly expenses at Occupy.”

Besides providing sustainability, Wallbaum said he hopes this project will show people the importance of the villages.

“I hope people are accepting it as a place to provide safety and dignity for people, and that is more than just housing,” Wallbaum said. “Many residents gain more than just housing out of this project—they gain a sense of community, and I think that's a really important component that's probably missed.”