Residents Move Into America's First Solar Powered Town

Residents will live in solar powered homes and ride around the community in self-driving, solar-powered shuttles. Babcock Ranch outside of Fort Myers, Florida, has been in the making since 2005. A city of 50,000 is forecasted.

3 minute read

January 18, 2018, 1:00 PM PST

By Irvin Dawid


Solar Powered City

Kitson & Partners / Flickr

"Families are starting to move into what is being called America's first solar-powered town," announces John Dickerson for CBS This Morning on Jan. 16. "Babcock Ranch, about half an hour northeast of Fort Myers, Florida, is supposed to produce more energy than it consumes once it's finished."

Developer Syd Kitson is building 20,000 homes for a projected 50,000 people, states Dickerson in the newscast video accompanying the article.

There are more than 300,000 solar panels spread across 440 acres there, producing enough electricity not only for the town, but also the surrounding areas, reports CBS News' Manuel Bojorquez.

One critical energy element lacking in the solar-powered community will be adequate energy storage to allow the city to be truly self-powered:

The town doesn't run on solar power all the time. At night, when the sun is down, it has to draw from the traditional electrical grid. Kitson says the technology for storing all that surplus energy the solar cells generate during the day is still too costly.

The video starts with a tour of the site in a solar-powered, autonomous shuttle, hailed with an app, which will serve future residents, as well as Richard and Robin Kinley, the town's first residents. The lake was even named after them.

"I felt very much like when I bought a Tesla back in 2013 and I said, this is definitely is going to make it," Richard said. "I felt the same way about Babcock Ranch."

Like the Kinleys, Kitson, who has been working on the development since 2005, is keen on sustainability.

We want to be the most sustainable new town in the United States," Kitson said. "We had the advantage of a green field, a blank sheet of paper. When you have a blank sheet of paper like this, you really can do it right from the beginning." 

Planetizen has followed the development since 2009. "More than half of the city's 17,000 acres will be permanently protected as greenways and open space, the developer said, and will adjoin the 73,000-acre Babcock Ranch Preserve that has been purchased by the state," notes the first post by Nate Berg.

The greenfield site that Kitson touts is the subject of the second post in 2011 by Shay Kahen that suggests that "when all construction CO2 emissions are factored in on these greenfield sites," a better model of sustainability is to make existing green cities, like New York, more sustainable through plans included in then Mayor Michael Bloomberg administration's PlaNYC, or today's OneNYC.

The third and final Planetizen post last year identifies significant sustainable attributes in addition to renewable energy.

The town will be walkable and bikeable, with 50 miles of nature trails. Residents will be able to plant crops in community gardens. Houses will be set near sidewalks so neighbors can more easily interact with one another. To encourage homeowners to drive electric vehicles, the town will install numerous charging stations. Its public vehicle fleet will be electric and driverless.

Tuesday, January 16, 2018 in CBS This Morning

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 9, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Map of Haussmann's redesign of Paris in the 1850s through 1870s under Napoleon III.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking

Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

June 30, 2025 - Tom Sanchez

Red and white "Wildfire Evacuation Route" sign on signpost.

Cal Fire Chatbot Fails to Answer Basic Questions

An AI chatbot designed to provide information about wildfires can’t answer questions about evacuation orders, among other problems.

July 10 - The Markup

Protester at Echo Park Lake, Los Angeles holding sign that says "Housing is a human right"

What Happens if Trump Kills Section 8?

The Trump admin aims to slash federal rental aid by nearly half and shift distribution to states. Experts warn this could spike homelessness and destabilize communities nationwide.

July 10 - Shelterforce Magazine

Aerial of rainbow painted crosswalks at large intersection in Castro District, Sna Francisco, California.

Sean Duffy Targets Rainbow Crosswalks in Road Safety Efforts

Despite evidence that colorful crosswalks actually improve intersection safety — and the lack of almost any crosswalks at all on the nation’s most dangerous arterial roads — U.S. Transportation Secretary Duffy is calling on states to remove them.

July 10 - Streetsblog USA

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Home and Land Services Coordinator

Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners

Associate/Senior Planner

Gallatin County Department of Planning & Community Development

Senior Planner

Heyer Gruel & Associates PA