Charles City school board passes vote to issue RFP for solar array project

After putting a halt on a solar array project at its June 18 monthly meeting, Charles City’s School Board will seek an RFP (request for proposal) of the project after Tuesday night’s meeting.

Board members voted 3-2 to issue the RFP after a lengthy discussion on the issue. The RFP will allow the school board to receive bids on the project if it is to be executed.

During the May school board meeting, Sun Tribe Solar made a formal presentation about constructing a solar array farm on 6.4 acres of land owned by the school. At the June gathering of school leaders, concerns were raised by Steve Fuhrmann about the lack of data, possible project costs, and the time frame of the proposed contract. Those concerns carried over into the request of the RFP, as he deemed not enough information was available to issue the RFP. District 3 representative Martha Harris agreed with Fuhrmann, citing concerns about the major project.

Superintendent of schools David Gaston advised the board that the RFP process is being used for evaluation in tandem with gathering information of how to go about the project.

School board members continued to discuss their opinions before the motion passed.