An Adopt-A-Watt solar street light installation with sponsor sign
Posted: Wednesday, 23 July 2008 5:26PM
He's Selling Solar Power One Light Pole At A Time
A former manufacturer's representative and stockbroker has found a new calling selling solar electric power -- one light pole at a time.
Thomas A. Wither has created the National Adopt-a-Watt Program, www.adoptawatt.com, and he's busily signing up municipalities, airports and other institutions.
The idea is simple, and is modeled on the national "Adopt A Highway" program. The program collects donations from businesses, organizations or individuals. The money is used to buy a solar power array for a street light. And the donor's name and logo are displayed on a nice plaque on the street light pole.
There are also sponsorable 500-watt solar energy collection arrays that simply feed power to the grid.
Among other institutions, the city of Royal Oak and Kalamazoo-Battle Creek International Airport are exploring the concept.
"The genesis of the idea was, let's stop waiting around for government subsidies and handouts that never seem to arrive, and instead let's take a business approach to this thing and figure out a way to make some money for cash strapped institutions and develop some clean and safe 21st century industry," Wither said.
Wither is currently working on a deal at the New York-New Jersey Port Authority and John F. Kennedy airport in New York. It's also gathered the support of 41 U.S. Clean Cities Coalitions in 21 states.
The price of the poles will depend on how big of a crowd will see the plaque. "We're looking at starting at $5,000 a year," Wither said.
The goal of the program is completely immodest. Wither said he bets he could get $6 billion to $7 billion a year in revenue for the program and plans to concentrate on prying money away from print media advertising.
"This is a visible, concrete statement that you're green," Wither said. "It's not an ad in a newspaper or a magazine saying you're green, this is concrete proof that you are doing something."
Wither said project discussions have been generated with mopre than 200 government and non-government agencies from Massachusetts to Hawaii for rest areas, travel plazas, bridges, tunnels, airports, sports and entertainment complexes, schools, hospitals, light rail and bus stops and more.
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