Nevada construction union sues Carson City School District over solar projects
Millions of dollars in solar energy projects slated for the Carson City School District hang in the balance after a lawsuit was filed on Monday by a Nevada construction union.
The Northern Nevada Building and Construction Trades Council filed a petition in District Court to stop Carson City School District’s plan to build solar energy arrays at five separate school locations in Carson City. A hearing is set for Thursday, 9 a.m. in Carson City District Court.
The BCTC petition asserts that the district did not “bid” the project according to Nevada law and should therefore be required to re-bid the $10.5 million dollar projects.
The school district believes that it met the “bid” requirements described in law (NRS 332.195) when it “joined” onto a contract established by the City of Sparks and Hamilton Solar for a similar solar project this year.
The Carson City School District solar project is one of many being built by public agencies within the state.
The district estimates that about $400,000 in annual electrical cost savings would be available once the solar projects are completed.
A rebate program sponsored by NV Energy is expected to pay for about 92 percent of the cost of the district’s project if completed by July 20, 2011. It amounts to about $11 million, school officials said.