DECATUR, Ill. (WCIA) — The solar canopies in the Decatur Civic Center’s parking lot are complete and now in operation.

On Friday, the city celebrated the inauguration of its new solar infrastructure with a ribbon-cutting event. They have installed six canopies equipped with over 2,600 solar panels, which city officials anticipate will meet up to 95% of the Civic Center’s electricity requirements for the coming 15 years.

“We constantly seek opportunities to reduce expenses, and this project was a straightforward choice,” stated Decatur Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe. “It generates clean energy, significantly reduces costs for taxpayers, and the city didn’t have to cover any construction or maintenance expenses; it truly benefits our community in multiple ways.”

The project, costing $5 million, was fully funded by the contractor who installed the canopies. City officials mentioned that the contractor would also own, manage, and be accountable for any repairs to the solar panels or system malfunctions.

The city plans to purchase power from this system at a fixed kilowatt per hour cost for 15 years, which could save taxpayers $120,000 annually. Another benefit is shaded and partially covered parking for Civic Center visitors.

In addition to the solar canopies at the Civic Center, the city is planning three other solar projects:

• One would cover most of the Decatur Public Library’s roof with panels and build four canopies in the library parking lot
• Another would build ground-mounted panels at the William Street Pump Station
• The last would build another canopy in the Civic Center parking lot to provide power to the nearby Senator Severns Transit Center. At this point, that project is in the study phase.

These projects could add another 2,100 panels to the city’s solar infrastructure, save taxpayers more than $118,000 annually, and they would again be paid for and owned by the contractor.