KENDALLVILLE â Itâs going to cost a little more now, but Kendallville is hoping a solar field designed and installed by a local green energy firm will reap bigger savings later.
Itâll cost about $800,000 more up front, but Kendallville has selected Renewable Energy Systems out of Avilla to build its new solar field on the former McCray Refrigerator factory site, despite that company submitting a higher bid among two received for the project.
Local governments are tasked with selecting the lowest most responsible and responsive bidder, not just the lowest price, and in this case, they felt that Renewable fit that bill better than Solar Energy Systems out of Nappanee.
KENDALLVILLE â A bid opening for Kendallvilleâs proposed solar field has been delayed two weeks as the city researches a potential legal snag with the project specifications.
The delay came after a Rochester-based solar company raised some issues with the cityâs bid specifications, leading to City Attorney Doug Atz to recommend a brief delay.
Kendallville had been hoping to open bids from contractors on the estimated $2.35 million project on Tuesday, then award bids in a special meeting on April 20 in order to get the project rolling as soon as possible.
Kendallville is hoping to build a 1-megawatt solar field on the former McCray Refrigerator factory site off Wayne Street, with the power generated going to reduce the utility costs from the next-door wastewater treatment plant.
KENDALLVILLE â About 20 Kendallville residents brought their questions Thursday night to an informational meeting about a proposed solar field on the former McCray Refrigerator industrial site.
Mayor Suzanne Handshoe hosted the meeting, which featured a panel-style presentation from solar energy experts Eric Hesher and Doug Alhfield of Renewable Energy Systems in Avilla and municipal finance expert Eric Walsh, a CPA and partner in BakerTilly.
The proposed solar field would take up most of the 11-acre McCray site off Wayne Street, one block west of Main Street, stretching from the west end of the property all the way to Mill Street.
The city has been mulling what to do with the lot since the McCray factory burned in a massive fire in June 2018 and the site was cleared. A solar field had been one of the initial ideas, and for a time was thought to be financially infeasible before the city recently got updated costs and financing information.