Superintendent Dr. Fred Czerwonka was authorized to sign a contract with Brightergy LLC, a company with offices in Kansas City and St Louis. Over the life of the 20-year deal, the district could save upwards of $3.45 million. But, Czerwonka says the intial contract will be for five years.
“At the end of five years we have an opportunity to end the relationship, or we can continue the relationship with them,” Czerwonka said.
He says Brightergy will own the solar panels, and if the district discontinues the relationship, they will be uninstalled.
Brightergy owner Ryan Gardner offered board members his guarantee that the project would use all local labor for the installations, and that the project would be completed by June 30th, to meet the requirements of Kansas City Power & Light and state utility regulators.
Gardner estimated about $1,000,000 in labor costs would go to a local contractor.
It has not yet been decided which buildings within the district qualify for the installation. Structural engineers from Brightergy will look over each building to make that determination.