Information from Village of Oak Park web site “The Smart City USA Project offers Oak Park property owners a unique and exciting opportunity to become innovators in community wide electrical efficiency, while providing proof of the commercial viability of various advanced monitoring and energy management technologies,” said Assistant Village Manager Robert Cole who currently is managing the local aspects of the project. The Village of Oak Park is announcing the Smart City USA partnership with the Korean Smart Grid Institute.
As many as 200 households (100 single family homes and 100 multi-family units) will be chosen to participate in the Oak Park Smart City USA Project that will showcase the potential cost savings and energy efficiencies of smart grid technologies, including solar power and energy storage.
Participants will receive a variety of technical installations in their homes, including solar panels, battery storage, energy management and demand response programs. Oak Park residential property owners who want to be considered when the Village facilitates the launch of a smart-grid pilot project are invited to fill out a brief online form posted at www.oak-park.us/smartcityusa.
The online form is the initial step to find participants whose properties may meet the criteria for consideration. Submitting information online will not guarantee selection, officials say, since additional, more in-depth screening will be necessary to identify qualifying properties.
Among the initial criteria for consideration are factors such property ownership, having a surface facing south or west with direct sunlight and an electrical service with circuit breakers. Participants also must have a high-speed internet connection and be willing to share their home energy data with the project team members for three years. In addition to the Village and KSGI, the project team likely will include partnerships with educational and research institutions interested in smart grid technology and residential electrical usage.
For more information on the project, email sustainability@oak-park.us or call 708.358.5770.
See also more information on the village web site: Screenings begin for Smart City USA Participants.
See also related GCC articles about early project development: Oak Park's Smart Grid Initiative in the News, and Smart Grid Technology will Facilitate Local Renewable Energy
