Babcock Ranch was designed to accommodate Florida's climate and ecosystems with indigenous plants and natural waterways for drainage; it was built 25 to 30 feet above sea level to help mitigate flooding from storm surges.
While hard-hit Fort Myers, Florida, continues its recovery from Hurricane Ian, some hope can be found 12 miles to the northeast at the planned community of Babcock Ranch. That's where Syd Kitson and his partners built an environmentally friendly, fully sustainable town that they hoped would be hurricane proof. Kitson, an eco-conscious developer and former pro football player, rode out the hurricane at Babcock Ranch. Unbelievably, none of the 5,000 people there lost power during the storm.
"We are the first solar-powered town in America," Kitson told 60 Minutes."We have a solar field that's 150 megawatts." "There's a lot of water, but you don't see a single panel that's been dislodged. And there was quite a bit of wind that came through here over the last few days," Kitson told Whitaker."Gusts of over 150, and it did not take a single panel out of here, which is really just remarkable."
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