Woodbury council highlights rooftop solar contract and battery grant for Fleet Services Building

Council members highlighted a consent-agenda award on April 16 to install a roof-mounted solar array on Woodbury’s Fleet Services Building, and staff said the city also was selected to receive an MPCA community resilience grant for a battery energy storage system to pair with the array.

Staff reported the Fleet Services Building was built in 2018 with future rooftop solar in mind; the array design can offset about 105% of the building’s annual electrical use. The construction contract for a roof-mounted array was reported as a $505,000 project that came in approximately 23% under the city’s earlier estimate. Staff said multiple external funding sources — including the Inflation Reduction Act, the Clean Energy Investment Tax Credit, and a Minnesota Pollution Control Agency local climate action grant — will help pay for the installation.

City staff told council the MPCA implementation grant for a battery energy storage system will be considered for acceptance in early May; staff later said both the photovoltaic array and the battery energy storage system are expected to be completed this year.

Finance and climate context: staff said the package of grants and federal tax credits positions the project for a projected payback period of about 8–9 years and advances the city’s environmental stewardship goals on municipal building electricity sourcing.

Taper: Council members said they plan to arrange opportunities to highlight the installation after completion, including a possible photo opportunity on the roof.