IZZY'S SOLAR PANELS PLUGGED IN AND RUNNING

Izzy's is the first shop (that we know of) in the United States to be running on solar.

Click for an actual web site reading of how much energy our solar panels are producing!

Izzy's High Noon Solar Project took a giant leap forward November 23, 2005 when electricity was produced from the 200 panels for the first time. The inspectors from the City of St. Paul gave the system the green light. The project is moving into its final fundraising push in December and the solar panels are currently generating power every day. Izzy's High Noon Solar Project began in May of 2004 and is now 18 old. The production and storage of ice cream consumes a lot of electricity. This project is set to cut Izzy's peak power demand by 30%. This locally produced power reduces electrical demand on the St. Paul grid, which a plus for everyone, while also producing clean energy. The 200 panels will generate 8.6 kilowatts of power during peak production. On a cold and sunny day in January when all the Izzy's Ice Cream makers are at home resting, Izzy's will be selling some of these kilowatts back to the grid.

This is the fun part of the solar project-the actual use. In its unique vision, Izzy's includes a sense of responsibility to the community in which it operates, and is committed to promoting the use of renewable energy, and in particular solar energy systems. The owners look forward to using their system as an opportunity to educate the public about solar energy. They also plan on sponsoring a $500 annual grant to individuals or businesses who wish to install solar energy systems in the Twin Cities metro area.

We started in 2004 with a goal to incorporate sustainable solar energy into the mission of Izzy's Ice Cream Café to be the first in the nation to maximize the relationship of the sun and ice cream sales - there seems to be a pretty direct relationship between energy use and ice cream sales/consumption.

Click Here to see Photos of the Construction!

As the owners of Izzy's we are very happy to report that we are DONE and PLUGGED IN. Recently some media outlets noticed the work we have been doing. The High Noon Solar project was reported on in the Highland Villager, the Women's Press, the Oracle at Hamline University, on Minnesota Public Radio and The Pulse.

PAST NEWS ITEMS:

High Noon Solar at Izzy's: A Community and Solar Energy Development Project.

Here's the Scoop
Izzy's Ice Cream Café is going solar— with your help. We plan to generate 30% of our peak electrical power demand through a new solar energy system. Izzy’s intends to become the first community-supported solar ice cream shop in the U.S. We are working to install an 8-kilowatt solar electric (photovoltaic, or PV) system on the roof of Izzy’s to produce electricity from the sunlight right in our neighborhood.

Why Go Solar?
Many people see the value of clean, quiet, solar energy, but the cost of even a modest-sized solar installation is too high for many households (ie. For further energy policy information see ME3 or Million Solar Roofs). Many homes don't have the appropriate conditions for solar energy production (south facing, un-shaded roofs). The idea is that because Izzy's roof is an ideal site for solar energy, we're organizing people to pool their resources so we can get solar energy into our neighborhood. Many people working together can accomplish what can be difficult for one family to do alone.

Izzy's works hard to create some of the finest ice cream in the nation. We use pure vanilla and premium ingredients to provide you with the best possible ice cream. Our business had the good fortune of some early success and we used that success to develop our own ice cream mix recipe and we began a year ago making most of our ice cream with milk and cream from the Pride of Main Street Dairy in Sauk Center, Minnesota. A fortunate benefit of this transition is that we are able to give greater support to local dairy farmers, because most of the milk and cream we use comes from central Minnesota family owned farms.

Now we are working to improve the means we use to bring you our great tasting ice cream. Keeping ice cream frozen requires the use of a lot of energy. We currently save on energy use by delivering ice cream in thermo-insulated bags instead of using a refrigeration truck and we save on energy by selling Peace Coffee, a local brand of fair trade and organic coffee that is delivered to us by bicycle.

Putting solar energy on the Izzy’s roof will allow us to produce some of our energy locally, right here at our store, and it will benefit the environment. In addition, to the inherent benefits, we hope to promote solar energy to our customers and the surrounding communities we serve.

We Continue to Build a Solid and Trusting Foundation

With nine months of work behind us, we have solar panels purchased from the Phillips Community Energy Cooperative at the Green Institute in Minneapolis, a contractor in place (Innovative Power Systems owned by a Merriam Park Resident), target goals for volunteer labor hours, and a schedule of fundraising events. We are working to build an 8 kilowatt PV system for Izzy’s Ice Cream Café at an overall cost of $55,000: $20,000 of the cost are PV panels purchased by the owners of Izzy’s. The panels were previously donated by BP Solar (*see www.bpsolar.com for more information on the environmental benefits of solar energy; for one source of our inspiration see www.oldmanriver.com) to the Green Institute and nearly 100% of this initial cost will qualify for rebate dollars through the Minnesota Department of Commerce and Excel Energy (i.e. a pass through expense for the owners of Izzy’s); $30,000 of the cost will be additional materials and installation of the PV panels. Additionally, we plan to co-ordinate volunteer labor at a value of $5,000 to the overall project. Lastly, the application we made to the STAR program in St. Paul for a grant of $5,000 based on the recommended support of our City Council Representative, Jay Benanav passed on September 22, 2004.

The High Noon Solar Project @ Izzy’s has been awarded a $5,000 Star Grant.