New All Solar Town Coming to SW Florida
Plans were announced this week to build a new town in Southwest Florida powered completely by solar energy. Babcock Ranch is east of I-75 between Punta Gorda and Ft. Myers, and is similar to Lakewood Ranch in Manatee County in size. Babcock Ranch is expected to consist of 20,000 homes priced from $250,000-$900,000. Following Lakewood Ranch's lead, Babcock Ranch will have a higher density downtown core of commercial buildings surrounded by residential development. With this number of homes, Babcock Ranch will be larger than the current population within the city limits of Venice. Proposed Babcock Ranch master plan Energy supplied to Babcock Ranch will come from a 75 megawatt solar plant nearby operated by FPL. Residents shouldn't expect to be "off the grid" in Babcock Ranch, since power will be supplied through FPL's main power grid during peak energy use and night time. Electric rates will be the same as the rest of FPL's residential customers. ...