Last month, Ron Tarver, began soliciting bids from solar installers to put solar on the roof of the historic Imperial Building in Denver, Colo. While he still wants to install solar, he’s now looking into working with the state to create a solar commission to make bulk PV purchases.

When I last talked with Tarver at the Bardo Coffee House in his building, he was enthusiastic about a bid from one company that was significantly lower than bids from other solar installers.

“Their bid was around $90,000; the others hovered around $130,000,” said Tarver. But the company he hoped to contract with laid off numerous employees—including the salesman he talked to.

“Where I’m at now is I’m on hold,” Tarver said. But that’s not the whole picture. Tarver is talking with the Denver City Council in an attempt to create a solar council or commission to help lower the price of solar by purchasing it in bulk.

Tarver’s researched how other cities in the western U.S. are helping to incent solar projects, including two in the Denver-metro area, Aurora and Lakewood. He gave examples from 10 cities to Denver’s City Council President.

“Almost all 10 will defer building permits if you put in solar. It doesn’t matter if it’s residential or commercial. They’ll simply defer the building permits. Aurora and Lakewood do it; Denver does not,” he said.

He also looked at how cities like St. George, Utah, are using property-assessed clean-energy (PACE) financing to allow easier access to loans from the city’s revolving loan fund at low interest rates. And location-base incentive programs like those offered in San Francisco.

“San Francisco does a myriad of things. They don’t do a loan, but they do a large rebate. In addition to a federal or state rebate the city of San Fran does a city rebate,” he said. “The rebate is dependent on what you put on the roof, but it’s also codependent on where you live. It’s to encourage people in lower income areas to put in solar.”

Tarver said he wants to work with the city, and rely on the city’s authority, which is already established.

“It’s more likely if I had the city go over and negotiate to buy 500 or 1,000 panels, a city representative would be less likely to get screwed than an individual like me would be,” he said.

Photo: Theo Romeo