A RESILIENT COMMUNITY
Resilient projects enhance economic vitality through job creation, workforce development, and STEM education. They establish advanced energy thinking, improve local services and social well-being, building on existing community strengths. This page outlines resilience initiatives being undertaken in Bronzeville, projects that illustrate how increased energy and infrastructure resilience also work to strengthen social resilience.
BRONZEVILLE COMMUNITY MICROGRID
The Bronzeville Community Microgrid (BCM) is part of the first utility-operated microgrid cluster and operates as the flagship project of Community of the Future. The BCM is being deployed to provide higher levels of energy resilience to Bronzeville while demonstrating the innovations that allow the grid to become more sustainable. Once completed, the microgrid that clusters with another microgrid at the Illinois Institute of Technology will serve more than 1,000 residences, businesses and public institutions. This includes businesses public institutions, and 11 customers that provide critical public services, such as the headquarters of the Chicago Fire and Police Departments.
With support coming from Department of Energy grants, the project was designed to be deployed in two phases. The first phase, which included the installation of solar PV and 500 kW/2MWh of energy storage, as well as an island test, was completed in 2019. The second phase will include sufficient controllable distributed energy resources to meet the load of the microgrid. Essential for deep carbon reductions, the microgrid is the foundational core for inclusive carbon solutions that strengthen the surrounding community.