From Municipalities to Manufacturers, Drawdown Georgia Business Compact Member Cherry Street Energy Streamlines Solar with On-Site Solution
Provider helps partner companies green their energy consumption and meet their larger sustainability goals by removing barriers to solar installation.
Cherry Street’s owned, operated, and maintained solar power system at the City of Atlanta's MLK Jr. Recreation and Aquatic Center. Photography by Sam Schlam, Cherry Street Energy.
Imagine being able to tap into the sun to produce your own energy and power your business right on your own property with no upfront capital cost. While it might sound like a dream, that’s the bright reality for businesses in Georgia partnering with Drawdown Georgia Business Compact (Compact) member company Cherry Street Energy. The company provides on-site solar to generate clean electricity for large-scale energy users in the commercial, industrial, nonprofit, and municipal sectors throughout the state – with an eye on expansion to the larger Southeastern region. An active Compact member, Cherry Street has leveraged their membership to build relationships with corporate partners in Georgia.
“When Michael Chanin founded the company after Georgia allowed the third-party sale of electricity, he wanted to remove the hurdles for businesses wanting a more sustainable energy solution,” said Sarah McMillan, Cherry Street Energy’s enterprise account leader, in a recent interview. Those hurdles include investment and infrastructure that often put solar out of reach for the average enterprise. With an on-site solution, businesses benefit from price predictability and energy reliability, all while reducing their organization’s carbon footprint.
Generating Good Energy
“The way that we make solar accessible is by making it as low a lift as possible for our partner companies,” said Frank Gaudio, senior customer success manager, in an interview. Cherry Street Energy not only builds and installs on-site solar, but owns, operates, and maintains those solar systems to keep the sun’s energy flowing and producing as much power as possible for businesses. “When we have conversations with our customers, we want them to understand the benefits of the infrastructure we provide,” according to Gaudio.
Cherry Street's solar power system at Creature Comforts' taproom in Athens, Georgia. Photography by Sam Schlam, Cherry Street Energy.
Starting primarily in the local municipal sector, the company has expanded throughout the state, providing energy for numerous sectors including synagogues and state parks, breweries and businesses, and educational institutions, among others. Through their connections to industry leaders in the Compact, Cherry Street Energy is currently working with other member companies in the transportation and beverage sectors. Their partnership with Creature Comforts offsets around 20% of the brewery’s energy usage. The systems – one at the brewery’s taproom in downtown Athens and the other at their Southern Mills production facility – have produced almost 600 MWh of renewable energy since being energized in 2021.
Are you a sustainable business operating in the state of Georgia? Join other leading companies leveraging the collective impact of the Georgia business community to achieve net zero carbon emissions in the state. Visit Get Involved on the Compact’s website or email David Eady, director of industry engagement.