Three Arden communities add backup-powered resilience hubs

Residents of Arden, Ardentown and Ardencroft now have three backup-powered gathering places to use during outages, and ArdensReady will showcase them at a preparedness event on Nov. 7 in Arden, Delaware. The hubs are meant to keep phone charging, Wi‑Fi and other basic services available when the grid fails.

Why it matters: - Arden, Ardentown and Ardencroft now have three community gathering places that can help residents stay connected during electrical outages. - The sites are designed to support basic needs such as charging phones, accessing Wi‑Fi and checking on neighbors. - The project is meant to strengthen local resilience, not replace formal emergency shelters.

What happened: - ArdensReady will highlight the three community resilience hubs at its third annual preparedness day on Saturday, Nov. 7, at the Buzz Ware Village Center in Arden, Delaware. - The three locations are the Buzz Ware Village Center at 2119 The Highway, the Arden Club Gild Hall and the Candlelight Theatre. - Buzz Ware is the first gathering place scheduled to open during an outage. - Gild Hall and Candlelight Theatre can be activated if needed. - Both Gild Hall and Candlelight Theatre have commercial kitchens.

The details: - Buzz Ware uses a solar array and battery storage designed to support at least three days of building electricity demand under the project’s planning assumptions. - Reducing air-conditioning use can extend battery operation. - Available sunlight may allow the solar array to recharge the batteries during a prolonged outage. - Actual operating duration depends on weather and electricity use. - Gild Hall and Candlelight Theatre are equipped with natural-gas generators. - Sol Donum and American Sentry Solar designed and installed the solar and storage system at Buzz Ware. - CE+T America supplied bidirectional power converters. - The team coordinated utility interconnection requirements with Delmarva Power. - Funding for Buzz Ware included Village American Rescue Plan Act funds, a Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control grant, a Delmarva Power solar-credit payment and support from Energize Delaware. - Separate grant funding supported the generators at the other two locations. - The facilities have already been used during localized outages. - Buzz Ware opened twice and provided residents with electricity and Wi‑Fi. - Candlelight Theatre opened on at least one occasion. - The Gild Hall generator was completed more recently.

Between the lines: - ArdensReady developed the initiative after residents raised concerns about the lack of community locations available during power outages. - Volunteers took part in emergency preparedness training with New Castle County Emergency Management. - The effort reflects a neighborhood-level response to outage risk, with a mix of solar-plus-storage and generator backup. - Sol Donum Co-Founder Clift Briscoe said the project shows the company’s expanding role in strengthening U.S. infrastructure and advancing local energy independence. - The quote also frames the system as a way to keep essential services operating when the grid goes down. - More information

What’s next: - ArdensReady’s preparedness day will include go-bag talks, Smart911, File of Life and a live look at the solar and battery monitor. - The three hubs are positioned to serve residents during future outages as needed.

The bottom line: - Arden’s three communities now have a layered backup-power network that can keep key gathering places usable when electricity fails.