The City of Evanston has begun its search for a contractor to install solar panels on the Robert Crown Community Center, advancing on a yearslong goal.

Since the center’s reconstruction in 2020, city officials have discussed installing solar panels on the building. More than three years later, Evanston put out a Request for Proposals from contractors on Aug. 3. With applications due Sept. 26, outside contractors can apply to work on the project through the RFP. The city will select the best bid, aiming to award the contract by Oct. 9, according to the RFP.

The city is looking to enter a “solar power purchase agreement” with an outside developer, allowing it to avoid steep costs upfront. Under this agreement, the contractor will install and maintain the panels. The city will then buy the power generated by those panels.

Prior to this process, Robert Crown received a silver LEED certification for sustainable building design from the U.S. Green Building Council. Silver is the third out of four tiers of LEED certification: platinum, gold, silver and certified.

Evanston has been working to increase the number of solar panels on public and private buildings alike for several years through initiatives like Evanston’s Accessible Solar Program.  

While some city buildings — like the Evanston Ecology Center, Levy Senior Center and Evanston Water Treatment Plant — already have panels installed, Evanston Sustainability Coordinator Cara Pratt said she’d like to see more buildings receive the same.

“Any city facility that has appropriate sunlight and a new enough roof should eventually have solar panels,” she told The Daily in January.

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Twitter: @avivabechky

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