Greenfield gives first approval for solar canopy at union training center

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Greenfield officials on Tuesday gave a thumbs up to the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 494’s proposal to build a solar power canopy over part of its training center parking lot.

The Greenfield Plan Commission unanimously approved the union’s plans to install a solar power system at South 103rd Street.

The union wants to install a 104-foot by 20-foot solar structure to train apprentices and offset 90 percent of the training center’s electrical usage, according to a city staff report. The size of the structure, which will be wide enough to cover 11 parking spaces, is based on the building’s electrical usage.

The proposal will have to get approval from the Greenfield Common Council before construction can begin.

The canopy design includes electric vehicle chargers and will be only used for parking during school and business hours, the staff report showed. Crews will also install solar panels onto the roof of the training center. The union proposed the car port because there wasn’t enough roof space to accommodate the system, the report added.

The structure will be between 13 and 10 feet on the southwest corner of the parking lot. There won’t be any repaving, instead the canopy will be built over the existing lot. The closest house is 245 feet away to the south, and only four commercial buildings that share the adjacent private drive will be able to see the canopy, the report showed.

City staff recommended the project, and asked the union to revise its plans to show that lighting from the canopy will be downlit.

The Local 494 and Madison-based Westphal & Company together submitted plans for the canopy, an agenda showed.

“(The canopy) will demonstrate how some of those energy needs can be met, while also providing a working demonstration model for the skilled trades and future projects with similar needs and goals,” said Greenfield Mayor Michael Neitzke.

“Having a working demonstration project in Greenfield with the trades and potential future solar implementing visitors is a beautiful thing,” he added.