Active Communities of Desert Center (AC-DC) is a nonprofit organization that serves the residents of Lake Tamarisk Desert Resort, a community adjacent to Desert Center about 50 miles east of Indio, just north of Interstate 10.
It has been ground zero in Riverside County for large-scale solar farms since construction began on the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm in 2011. In 2021, an onslaught of solar projects near Lake Tamarisk began—within a year’s time, there were at least five different solar companies building utility-scale solar projects, in various stages of completion. That’s when a cadre of committed homeowners came together to begin pushing back against the developments, as well as the Bureau of Land Management and Riverside County; that cadre became AC-DC
While all of the projects were completed, the AC-DC rebellion did eke out some victories over the past five years. Early on, a small victory resulted in the relocation of a substation. But most notably, in January 2025, they convinced Intersect Power, original owners of the 3,800-acre Easley Project, to grant their enclave a one-mile buffer zone between the massive solar panel arrays and the backyards of residents. They also negotiated a donation from the solar producer, which has been used for infrastructure upgrades benefiting the broader Lake Tamarisk community.
These concessions marked the start of an age of “cooperation and mitigation” for AC-DC. Over the past few years, Mark Carrington, chair of Active Communities of Desert Center, has shepherded a variety of projects by convincing community engagement personnel at the solar producers surrounding AC-DC to provide funding to improve the community’s quality of life and market desirability.
IPX Power, which controls the Easley and Oberon solar fields now, has donated funds for three community events, the purchase of a fairway lawn mower for the Lake Tamarisk golf course, and supplies for the rehabilitation of the dock in Lake Tamarisk. EDF Power Solutions, owners of the Sapphire, Maverick and Desert Harvest projects, has funded the annual Halloween community celebration for two years now, and entered a three-year commitment with AC-DC to upgrade the community-center kitchen. NextEra Energy Resources, owner of the Desert Sunlight project, donated two bicycle racks, while Clearway Energy, which runs the Arica, Victory Pass, Redonda, Bajada and Savira solar fields, has funded a 10” telescope and musical instruments to launch an instrument lending library for children in the community. Lastly, SB Energy, which controls the Athos project, has funded DIY kits for building a children’s playground and a shade gazebo structure at the Set Free Church in Lake Tamarisk.
“Whenever we enter a new project community, we go in with the approach that we want to be a good neighbor,” said Francisca Martinez, senior community engagement manager for EDF Power Solutions, in a recent interview. “We know that our projects will be in the community for decades, and the approach that we take (as our) core philosophy is to build with our project communities, not just in the project communities. … Instead of coming in with a pre-identified list of priorities, we listen to the community, and they’ve been able to share what their priorities are, what their needs are. One of the most recent contributions (EDF has made) has been the Lake Tamarisk community kitchen renovation. This was something that the community identified as a priority, as a vital resource.”
AC-DC and Carrington have also built a productive working relationship with Riverside County to enable the community, officially designated as County Service Area 51, to receive their share of B-29 funds, which are annual fees collected from each company that operates solar fields on county-owned lands. These fees, based per-acre, provide dollars to the county for use in mitigating the impact of utility-scale solar plant construction. The Board of Supervisors has approved 25% of the local B-29 funds to be utilized for specific projects presented to them by the AC-DC residents. According to Carrington, the projected amount of funding to the community should be between $400,000 and $580,000 per year from 2025 to 2035.
“After we got a settlement (with Intersect Power, now part of IPX Power) and we secured the one-mile buffer zone around the community, I had really two (next) steps,” Carrington said during a recent interview. “One, just to secure that settlement, but two, to find the funding that could be used by the community to replace the desirability that we lost. The whole desirability was based on, ‘Here’s an oasis in a natural desert environment.’ Well, now we have a mile around us, but we’re in an industrial zone, and that changes the character and certainly the desirability of the community. … If that’s lost, then what do you do as an alternative to make your community desirable? That’s going to take money.”
He began researching the B-29 and adjacent funds.
“Once we had that understood, then the process was: How do you go and actually get those funds?” Carrington said. “That’s when we started putting projects together that would be to the benefit of the community and make the community more desirable. To begin, it was the community center upgrade of the building, to not just code, but to improve its functionality. … Then a swimming pool upgrade, and one of the enticing parts for the county itself was to put in a covered parking lot with solar panels on top of it, so they would not be visible to residents, but producing over one-third of all the power used for the community. We’re going to expand that concept so that (the solar array) operates our water system, and operates the CSA Hall, which is used a lot, (and) also the library, and potentially part of the fire station. That’s what we’re working toward.”
While these projects have not yet received final approval by the county, Carrington and his neighbors are confident that the funds will be coming to them soon.
“The Board (of Supervisors) … made a resolution that Lake Tamarisk, or County Service Area 51, would receive 25% of (the collected B-29 funds), which is enough to do these improvements, because this 25% lasts for 30 years,” Carrington said. “They can leverage money. You know, if we have a $1.3 million solar panel project for the parking lot, that can be leveraged, because you have 30 years to pay it—and it’s guaranteed income. It isn’t like (the solar companies) can get out of it.”
Adding to that future B-29 fund reserve will be five new solar projects in various stages of development, including the Redonda Solar Project, the Savira Solar Project and the Bajada Solar Project, all owned by Clearway; and the Lycan Solar Project, owned by EDF Power Solutions.
“You’re going to need people who are willing to put the time and effort into it, to protect your community. The odds of stopping (the solar development) altogether are very small. But there are ways, potentially, to modify them.”
Mark Carrington, when asked what advice he would offer other communities being impacted by solar developments
Mike Franklin is the deputy director of Riverside County’s Office of Economic Development, and has the responsibility to evaluate project funding requests from AC-DC.
“The Office of Economic Development works closely with the residents of Lake Tamarisk to receive direct input on the concerns of the community,” Franklin told the Independent via email. “Staff also interacts frequently with residents to share operational needs for the golf course, and the domestic water treatment and distribution system so the community is aware of funding needed for those types of improvement projects.”
AC-DC recently sent a new and important funding proposal to Franklin’s office.
“We’ve put together a water system proposal that the county can actually partner with AC-DC on,” Carrington said. “Our water treatment system now is from the mid-1960s, and it functions, but it’s 100% manual. … We have a good operator who’s dedicated, and so it works—but you still get poor quality water. … The Health Department passes the water, but it doesn’t taste good, and it doesn’t smell good, but it’s legally OK. … This system would actually clean the water completely. It’ll come out of your tap (in) bottled-water quality.”
Given his success at acquiring these community-improvement funds, we asked Carrington what advice he would offer other communities being impacted by solar developments.
“My first suggestion on the struggle is don’t give up,” Carrington said. “While it feels hopeless along the way … you can have an impact. You have to not give up, and you have to put energy into it. It isn’t something you can think is going to be taken care of on its own. You’re going to need people who are willing to put the time and effort into it, to protect your community. The odds of stopping (the solar development) altogether are very small. But there are ways, potentially, to modify them.”
AC-DC’s website (acofdc.com) prominently features a link to its “Guiding Principle” for surviving as a viable community in a sea of utility-scale solar power plants.
“By working together, rural communities, local government, and renewable energy developers can create positive and lasting improvements that not only offset impacts, but help build stronger, more sustainable communities,” it reads, in part. “We believe this collaborative model can serve as a positive example for rural communities throughout California and across the United States.”
