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Middleton sustainability committee delays vote on police‑station solar purchase, seeks outside analysis
Summary
Committee members voted to defer a decision on whether to buy an existing rooftop solar array from the local utility and asked staff to obtain external appraisals and payback analyses before recommending a final option to council.
The Middleton Sustainability Committee voted to defer a decision on purchasing a rooftop solar installation after members said they lacked enough fiscal detail to pick among three options presented by staff.
The committee’s motion, made by Kermit (committee member) and seconded by Tony (committee member), asks staff to seek additional information from both internal finance staff and external parties — including a consultation with Legacy Solar Co‑op — on topics such as net present value, expected payback period, how much electricity the police department building uses and how much an owned system would produce.
Kelly (city staff) told the committee that Madison Gas and Electric’s (MGE) “fair market value” offer for the existing system exceeded the budgeted amount and that Bill Burns in finance had run calculations showing a purchase at MGE’s higher price would not be the best fiscal decision for the city as currently priced. Kelly said an appraisal could be pursued but cautioned it would be costly and might not yield a lower price.
Several committee members raised concerns about maintenance obligations and long‑term liability. One member asked whether rooftop leaks or future repairs would fall to the city if it purchased the array; Kelly said those questions would be governed by the purchase contract and that staff would return with contract language and spreadsheet detail.
Tony, who described long experience with residential solar, argued owning a system can pay off over time. Other members said they wanted clearer figures on annual energy savings and payback assumptions before committing capital or foregoing an estimated $76,000 in carryover funds that could be used for other sustainability projects.
By voice vote the committee approved the motion to postpone the vote and directed Kelly to return with the requested financial projections, contract details and outside consultation results. The item will return to a future meeting and any purchase would still require council and finance approvals.
