Green Corridor and the PACE Program
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Description
The Town of Cutler Bay's Go Green Initiative promotes and encourages environmental responsibility in our community.
Green Corridor and the PACE Program:
The Town has launched a monumental green initiative that has taken not only local cities by storm, but the State, too. Mayor Vrooman first championed the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, which enables property owners to borrow money to buy solar panels, wind generators, insulation or shutters for their homes. The Green Corridor consists of the following municipalities: Cutler Bay, Coral Gables, Palmetto Bay, Pinecrest, and South Miami.
The Town of Cutler Bay was recently successful in its efforts to gain legislative authority to create a district to provide a Financing Initiative for Renewable and Solar Technology (FIRST).
Essentially, the bill would allow citizens in certain areas to voluntarily opt-in to a program in which the district loans the money to pay the initial cost associated with the installation of an alternative energy-producing device, and then subsequently the property owner would repay the cost over time.
Bonds are issued by the special district and backed by property tax liens on the residences of owners who are awarded Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans from the bond pool. The property owner repays the loan over a 10, 15 or 20-year period through an increase on their annual property taxes approximately equal to one-twentieth of the loan plus interest. For many homeowners, the annual energy cost savings they will realize from the retrofitting will exceed the cost of the annual repayment costs.
