Title
Authorizing the City to apply for $63,075 from the Minnesota Department of Commerce’s Solar on Public Buildings Grant Program for solar installation at Hamline Midway Library.
Body
WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul’s Climate Action and Resilience Plan adopted in December 2019 established the goal of achieving carbon neutrality in municipal operations by 2030 and included a key action of increasing installations of renewable energy at city buildings; and
WHEREAS, the Minnesota Legislature established the Solar on Public Buildings Grant Program in 2023 to provide grants to stimulate the installation of solar energy systems on public buildings; and
WHEREAS, the Hamline Midway Library currently under construction was designed to align with the State of Minnesota's B3 Sustainable Buildings Guidelines and SB2030 Energy Standard, which require on-site renewable energy production for the facility; and
WHEREAS, the Office of Financial Services and Saint Paul Public Libraries are requesting permission to apply for $63,075 in grant funds from the Solar on Public Buildings Grant Program to cover 60% of the costs to install a 33-kWdc rooftop solar array at the Hamline Midway Library with the remaining project costs to be paid by the existing construction budget for the new facility; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, the Saint Paul City Council expressly provides its support for the City of Saint Paul to submit a grant application to the Solar on Public Buildings Program to support solar installation at Hamline Midway Library.