Verigee outlines $10.5 million solar plan to power four Trenton municipal facilities

Verigee representatives presented a $10.5 million proposal to the Trenton City Council on July 21 to install solar arrays at four municipal sites — the wastewater treatment plant, Kennedy Recreation Center, Veterans Library and the Westfield Center — and said the project could offset roughly a third of the city’s electricity and produce more than $200,000 in first‑year savings.

The presentation matters because federal Inflation Reduction Act incentives and “direct pay” rules can return a large portion of the project cost to public entities that meet schedule and construction requirements, lowering the city’s up‑front cost and improving long‑term savings projections.

Verigee engineer Tyler Grant and Verigee representative **** Williams told council the four sites together use just under 6,000,000 kilowatt‑hours a year and have about $700,000 in annual electric spending. Grant said proposed arrays would generate about 2,100,000 kilowatt‑hours annually — roughly one‑third of total use — and Verigee estimated over $200,000 in electrical savings in year one. Williams said the company used a conservative 40% assumed federal incentive (30% base investment tax credit plus a 10% domestic content adder) in its economics rather than assuming additional adders for low‑income community criteria.

Grant described system sizing and production estimates: an approximately 800‑kilowatt ground‑mounted array at the wastewater plant (about 43% offset of that site’s 2024 usage); a roof‑mounted array just under 650 kilowatts for the Kennedy Rec Center (about a 30% offset); and two parking‑lot carport arrays for the Veterans Library and Westfield Center that together would cover roughly 82 parking spaces and would be sized to offset most or all of those facilities’ electricity use. The proposal also includes replacing the Kennedy Center roof with a white membrane and using bifacial panels to recover additional energy from reflected sunlight.

On project economics, Williams said the estimated gross cost is $10,500,000; using the 40% federal tax credit yields roughly $2,800,000 in direct pay to the city after the project is energized and the city files for the credit (Verigee projected that filing would occur in 2027). That produces an estimated net project cost of about $7,700,000, which Verigee proposed to finance via a lease at an illustrative interest rate of 4.45%. The company presented a 30‑year production and savings model that projects about $18,000,000 in gross utility savings over 30 years and a net positive cash flow of roughly $6,300,000 over that period. Verigee estimated the installed systems would support about 57 jobs and reduce carbon dioxide emissions roughly equivalent to 44,000 tons of CO2 over the same timeframe.

Grant said Verigee would include a live solar monitoring dashboard for the arrays to provide real‑time production data, alarms for component faults and measurement‑and‑verification for the company’s guaranteed production. He also described product warranties and maintenance: inverters warrantied for about 20 years and solar panels for about 30 years, with Verigee offering optional ongoing maintenance contracts or training city staff to inspect inverters and respond to alerts.

Councilmembers asked questions about winter performance, cleaning, insurance and the possibility of battery storage. Grant and Williams said the design did not rely on regular manual cleaning in Trenton’s climate — modeled soiling (including snow cover) is included in production estimates — and that carport arrays would include gutters and downspouts to prevent meltwater from dropping on people leaving the buildings. On batteries, Verigee said it did not include energy storage in the base design because it would raise costs and maintenance; however, battery systems could be added later if the city chooses.

Williams described schedule conditions tied to the federal rules: to secure protections under current guidance, the city needs a signed contract in 2025 and evidence it is under construction this year; Verigee said it had submitted a contract and proposed final engineering in August–September, component ordering (about a 60‑day lead time) and construction starting in 2025 with job completion projected in October 2026.

Councilmembers voiced support and asked staff to review the proposal; no formal council approval of a contract or financing package occurred at the July 21 meeting.