An old landfill in Richmond, Virginia becomes a solar farm
Richmond City Council voted unanimously on October 14, 2025 to approve a contract turning a capped landfill in the East End of Richmond, Virginia into a 15 acre solar farm the city calls a solar meadow, pairing a solar array with pollinator friendly ground cover as one design rather than 2 separate features. The landfill operated from the 1960s until the city closed and capped it in September 1983, according to the City of Richmond Office of Sustainability. The city counts the whole capped landfill parcel at 25 to 30 plus acres, larger than the 15 acre solar meadow site itself. Developer Ameresco will build a 5 megawatt solar array across those 15 acres, enough peak generation to power about 1,250 homes.
One combined solar meadow, not a garden next to a solar farm
The pollinator planting is part of the solar meadow design itself, not an added garden beside the panels. A further, dedicated pollinator garden is only a possible addition, not yet built, that could come out of a 500,000 dollar Community Benefits Agreement letting East End neighbors help decide how the deal benefits them, alongside other options like electric vehicle charging stations and youth programming. Laura Thomas, director of the City of Richmond Office of Sustainability, described how that process works.
It's very similar to a participatory budgeting process. And so we're excited that we're going to be able to raise up elements of sustainability and resilience,
Laura Thomas, director of the City of Richmond Office of Sustainability. Source 1.
Ameresco will pay Richmond 2.7 million dollars in rent over the 35 year life of the contract, with the 500,000 dollars for the Community Benefits Agreement paid upfront rather than spread across those 35 years.
The 500,000 dollars for the Community Benefits Agreement is paid upfront rather than spread across the 35 year contract, shown here as 0.5 on the same millions of dollars axis as the 2.7 million dollar total.
Show the numbers
| Total rent Ameresco pays Richmond over the 35 year contract | 2.7 |
| Amount committed upfront for the Community Benefits Agreement | 0.5 |
Nearby households can get Dominion Energy bill credits
Up to 350 households near the East End site can enroll in Dominion Energy Virginia shared solar program once the array is running, for an estimated 160 dollars a year each in bill credits. This solar meadow is built at exactly 5 megawatts, matching Dominion Energy own cap on a single shared solar facility, 5,000 kilowatts, according to the utility own program page, the ceiling the project appears built to fill rather than land on it by chance.
The 1,250 figure is the homes powered estimate source 1 reports for the array peak output. The 350 figure counts only nearby households eligible to enroll for Dominion bill credits, a separate, smaller group.
Show the numbers
| Homes the 5 megawatt solar meadow can power at peak output | 1250 |
| Nearby households eligible for Dominion shared solar bill credits | 350 |
The city is racing a federal tax credit deadline while it cuts emissions
Construction on the solar meadow must start by July 4, 2026 and finish by December 31, 2027 for the project to qualify for a 30% federal construction tax credit. Richmond frames the project as part of its RVAgreen 2050 climate plan, which targets a 45% cut in citywide greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and net zero emissions citywide by 2050, with the waste sector specifically targeted to reach net zero by 2030. Dawn Oleksy, energy program manager in the City of Richmond Office of Sustainability, described the cross department Joint Energy Team that helped site projects like this one.
Saving the dollars and providing the long term economic and social benefits is just part of it, but breaking down the silos is its greatest value,
Dawn Oleksy, energy program manager in the City of Richmond Office of Sustainability. Source 1.