Community development districts in The Villages will see some relief in huge increases in pole rental rates demanded by SECO Energy.
CDD supervisors were stunned earlier this summer by increases of up to 600 percent for pole rental, prompting some CDDs to begin looking at installing their own poles.
However, it was recently announced that SECO Energy will receive approximately $100 million in federal grants and low-interest financing.
Deputy District Manager Carrie Duckett on Friday told officials in The Villages that the CDDs can expect to see some financial relief thanks to the infusion of money that SECO will be receiving. Officials took some solace in the news, as they have wrestled with the problem for months and meeting with SECO officials. Ultimately, the increases would be paid for by residents of The Villages.
SECO has been awarded the money aimed at supporting clean energy initiatives such as area light conversions to LED and micro-grid/community solar projects. SECO Energy was a co-applicant with Seminole Electric Cooperative and Suwannee Valley Electric Cooperative on the Empowering Rural America grant application to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which was facilitated by OVID Solutions, in Tallahassee.