The City of Grass Valley’s June 28th City Council meeting celebrated the completion of a number of municipal energy efficiency and solar projects through an energy performance contract with Opterra Energy, including new solar generation, LED streetlight retrofits across the City, ADA compliance retrofits for all streetlights, upgraded interior and exterior lighting, and installation and replacement of the roof at City Hall.
As both members of the public and the City Council celebrated during the Board meeting, Grass Valley’s energy technology overhaul has helped bring about more long-term impact as well:
- Electricity spending is down by 50%
- City roads are safer and more inclusive for all community members, with brighter LED traffic lights and ADA compliant streetlight
- Carbon emissions avoided as a result of the energy upgrades is the equivalent to removing 237 cars from the road annually.
Through this successful partnership, Grass Valley has implemented an integrated suite of energy solutions with assured project lifetime savings of $7 million. As expressed by Mayor Jason Fouyer, “We are proud to have this significant achievement in both energy savings and fiscal stewardship for the Grass Valley community through our energy project. This is a major win for all of us, as a small community committed to protecting the special place we call home through sustainable choices that also empower us to reinvest our savings right back into the community.”
Read more in Opterra Energy’s press release covered by Yahoo Finance News here.