By Trace Salzbrenner — [email protected]
Despite not winning a state grant, plans are moving ahead with the rooftop solar project at the Ellen Garrison Building at Concord Middle School.
Concord Municipal Light Plant Director Jason Bulger says CMLP is pursuing a private financing arrangement that could allow construction to begin this summer.
Speaking to the School Committee on May 20, Bulger said the district wasn’t selected for a state Green School Works grant that could have provided roughly $1.4 million toward the project. 
Bulger said the state program drew 61 applications totaling $138 million in requests, but only $19 million was available. He added that most of the awards ultimately went to school heating and cooling projects using ground-source heat pumps, not solar installations.
“Even though they touted solar and energy storage as a main component of this grant, it seems like they were focused in other directions,” Bulger said. 
Rather than returning to a traditional bidding process, CMLP is exploring a power purchase agreement with a solar developer. Under that model, a private developer would finance, build, and own the rooftop solar system. CMLP would buy the electricity generated by the panels at an agreed-upon rate.
Bulger said the arrangement would eliminate upfront costs and financial liability for the school district and transfer construction and tax-credit risks to the developer. 
“If they don’t produce the power, we don’t pay,” he said.
A closing window 
Earlier concepts of solar panels at the middle school involved parking lot canopies and battery storage. Bulger said those have been set aside because of costs and complications tied to exporting excess electricity to the grid. 
The revised proposal focuses only on rooftop solar panels.
Bulger said CMLP officials have begun discussions with several experienced solar developers that specialize in municipal and school projects. Some firms, he said, have materials already available, potentially allowing work to begin during the summer break if agreements can be finalized quickly.
The next step will come at the Light Board’s June 18 meeting, where Bulger plans to present pricing and details of how responsibilities would be divided among the developer, the light plant, and the school district.
Bulger cautioned that substantial legal and logistical work remains, including insurance review, contract negotiations, and coordination with school operations. Still, he said, developers believe there is still a chance for installation before students return in the fall.
“We have not yet missed that window,” he said.
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