International President Kenneth W. Cooper visited the Atlantic City Convention Center in March, touring a facility that has long been 100% union.

New Jersey, where the Third District Progress Meeting was held, is embracing cleaner energy sources like solar, which Folsom, N.J., Local 351 members have been maintaining and retrofitting for years.

“It’s inspiring to see the IBEW once again leading the charge with renewable energy and ensuring that the work is done by union members,” Cooper said.

Local 351 has long been doing all aspects of solar energy work at the convention center, which opened in 1997, Business Manager Daniel Cosner said.

“It speaks well to the relationship that Local 351 has cultivated over the years,” he said. “It’s put us at the top of the union ‘food chain.’”

Cosner, a member of the International Executive Council, said there are about 40 members working throughout the center, including electrical for the various events that pass through.

All of the other workers at the center, from bartenders to maintenance workers, are unionized as well.