In November 2012, the University of Illinois Board of Trustees approved construction of a 20.8-acre solar farm to be located along the south side of Windsor Road between First Street and the railroad tracks. Initial construction was delayed due to changes in State of Illinois procurement laws.

Phoenix Solar South Farms LLC was hired by University in 2015 to design, build, and operate a 20.8-acre Solar Farm at the Windsor Road site. The Solar Farm will produce an estimated 7.86 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) annually or approximately 2% of the FY15 electrical demand for the Urbana campus making this site one of the largest university solar arrays in the country.

The University signed a 10-year power purchase agreement with Phoenix Solar to purchase all electricity produced by the Solar Farm and deliver it directly to the campus grid. In addition, the University will own/receive all current and future Renewable Energy C​ertificates (RECs) and emission credits associated with energy from the 4.68 megawatt (MW) Solar Farm.

Research estimates the Solar Farm will generate up to 91% of its original output even in year 20 of the project.
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A Solar Farm Dashboard by AlsoEnergy provides hourly information on the solar array’s renewable energy production and impact to campus as well as solar data for research and education.