Cologne Becomes Minnesota's 1st Solar-Powered Town

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A Minnesota town has become the first in the state to source 100 percent of its electricity with solar power.

Cologne has a population of 1,500 people in Carver County.

The city council voted to subscribe to a community solar garden developed by the company SunShare.

The legislature passed a law in 2013 making it possible for small businesses and homeowners that cannot afford their own solar systems to share energy produced by a solar garden.

The city expects to save more that $1 million in energy costs over the next 25 years.