The City of Mount Vernon will have more properties adding solar capabilities.
The council approved a 20-year contract with Red Lion Solar Energy to add additional solar panels to the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Police Department and the Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center, as long as the items are approved by both the planning and zoning and board of adjustment committees and city attorney.
At the police station, the panels will be installed behind the building, mostly out of sight of most people driving by the station, as that provides the best coverage of light. Because the panels will be mostly on the ground, those need approval from the board of adjustment.
At the Buresh Center, the panels will be both on the roof and ground level.
The ground level panels will be installed on the north side of the parking lot. The 10-foot high panels will cover a portion of the center’s 20 to 25 parking spots in the lot, and provide some shaded spots.
Mount Vernon city council member Scott Rose asked if there would be a way to keep people from hitting the solar panels with their vehicle.
Terry Dvorak with Red Lion Solar Energy noted that the panels will be installed behind the curbline and cantilevered to cover back over the parking spots, meaning that the supports would be a distance from vehicles and would require a vehicle to jump a curb before they were even struck.
Mount Vernon city administrator Chris Nosbisch said his concern was snow removal during the winter by city vehicles.
When it came to snow, Dvorak said no one would be responsible for clearing the panels on the roofs or ground units.
“That’s the risk I take in that there are a few months in the winter where these panels do not generate electricity,” Dvorak said. “Most of these panels clear themselves by the heat and energy they produce sometime after snowfalls and start generating electricity again.”
Rose motioned to allow the solar panels to move forward, noting that it was something he was happy to see continued at multiple city properties.
“I agree and it makes complete sense for these panels to be at both these locations,” said Mount Vernon city council member Stephanie West. “It shows a visible commitment to this city to embrace solar energy as well.”
Mount Vernon mayor Tom Wieseler asked who is responsible for recycling the units at the end of life.
Dvorak said that would ultimately be the responsibility of who owned the panels 50 years in the future.
Mount Vernon
approves John Deere skidloader purchaseThe Mount Vernon city council also approved the purchase of a John Deere 3370 Skid loader for the public works department for $60,000.
Mount Vernon mayor Tom Wieseler and council member Paul Tuerler had been included in emails on communication from RTL Equipment as to why the city was not purchasing the equipment locally.
Mount Vernon city administrator Chris Nosbisch explained the city routinely seeks bids for the equipment they need.
“We put out bids for the equipment we need to be able to do certain things,” Nosbisch said. “In this case, the John Deere fills the requirements we needed for the work it is doing. Other similar pieces of equipment were either too large or too small. The John Deere also had the weight we needed for the machine.”
Nosbisch said that while there may be dealers with closer proximity to Mount Vernon, there are no dedicated mechanics for Bobcat, RTL or John Deere equipment locally, and the city’s bid process is to select the equipment that fits their needs.
The city is purchasing the equipment for the coming fiscal year.