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<br /> <br /> STAFF REPORT <br /> <br /> <br />TO: Mayor Fischer and Members of City Council <br /> <br />FROM: Laura Linehan, Community Relations Manager <br />Bill Dircks, Public Works Director <br /> <br />DATE: August 14, 2024 <br /> <br />RE: Request for Proposals (RFP) for Solar on Public Buildings – City Hall <br /> <br />ACTIONS TO BE CONSIDERED: <br />City Council is asked to consider approval of the issuance of a Request for Proposals (RFP) for <br />Solar on Public Buildings for Little Canada City Hall. <br /> <br />BACKGROUND: <br />In 2023 the Minnesota Legislature established the Solar on Public Buildings (SPB) Grant <br />Program. The purpose of this program is to provide grants to stimulate the installation of solar <br />energy systems on public buildings. The Department of Commerce plans to issue $4.3M in <br />grants to local governments in Xcel Energy's electric service territory through at least two <br />funding rounds. Eligible applicants for this grant program are local units of government, <br />including a county, statutory, or home rule charter city, town, or other local government <br />jurisdictions. <br /> <br />Grants will be awarded for up to 70% of the project costs (dependent on the government’s <br />financial capacity – Little Canada is Tier 2 and up to 60%) for a solar array that is built on or <br />adjacent to a public building and is the lesser of 40kW system capacity or 120% of the building’s <br />annual energy consumption. <br /> <br />APPLICATION PROCESS: <br />Staff attended the first public engagement webinar on February 22, which kicked off the Solar on <br />Public Buildings Grant Program (State of MN) to gather information. <br /> <br />Based on that webinar, staff scheduled a University of Minnesota partner Clean Energy Resource <br />Team (CERT) meeting with Peter Lindstrom from the University of MN. This was held on April <br />8, 2024. Staff received 12 points towards the Readiness Assessment based on having this <br />meeting. Staff also attended a secondary webinar held on April 20 which provided additional <br />information. <br /> <br />In order to be eligible for the first round of funding, applicants must go through two steps: the <br />Notice of Intent: Public Building Readiness Assessment, and the Full Grant Application. Staff <br />submitted the Public Building Readiness Assessment in May of 2024. On July 1, staff was <br />notified the city’s Readiness Assessment was selected to move to the full application step, with <br />an eligible award of 60% of project costs up to $72,000 (See Attachment A).