Carson officials may enter contract with renewable energy developer

Carson City may be taking a gamble Thursday if supervisors agree to sign a contract with a California developer of renewable resource projects, but the risk may pay off by boosting the city's economy.

Princeton Development Corp. was selected to become the exclusive developer of the alternative energy industry in the city.

Supervisors will consider entering into an agreement with the company Thursday giving the private corporation the go-ahead to study and identify what types of projects will be best for the region and the economy.

But like the shifting winds that may soon be harnessed and turned into usable energy, many details are uncertain.

For instance, who will ultimately pay for it and how much will that be?

The city's proposed agreement with Princeton calls for the company to pay the up-front costs for the studies and pre-development. Princeton is same developer that in May unsuccessfully pitched building a Carson auto mall off Hot Springs Road with a $27.5 million incentive package from the city.

As part of the agreement, however, the city and its potential partners in the deal -- Washoe and Churchill counties, the state, Carson-Tahoe Hospital and the Carson City School District -- "expect to compensate Princeton for economic development activity through future commodity transactions."

The city and its partners can reject all proposals brought forth by the company in the pre-development phase that will last from two to five years. But if they do, they can't sign on with another company for a similar renewable energy project for five years without repaying Princeton for its efforts, the contract reads.

"The city doesn't know how much it will cost," said Tom Hoffert, city utilities manager.

The agreement was placed on the supervisor's consent agenda, which usually means it is approved along with a long list of other every-day city business decisions. Public discussion was not expected to take place.

Hoffert and City Manager Linda Ritter said they don't know how the contract approval got on the consent agenda, but supervisors can always remove it and make the decision during the meeting.

Eric Thompson, project manager for Princeton Development Corp. of Sausilito, said he is confident the company will find fitting projects for the city.

"It's a lot of investment at first," Thompson said. "I hate to put a number in the paper and have people be scared whether it be too low or too high in relation to their expectations.

"We will be investing considerable resources. People who know about those kinds of projects know what that takes," he said.

With the region's resources in wind, solar, energy efficiencies and interested partners, the company will be able to combine "synergies of different kinds of energy projects," Thompson said.

The company's proposal, Princeton has included the possible construction of a wind farm that could produce up to 100 megawatts of power. Princeton and its corporate investors would pay for funding, real estate transactions, siting, planning and to build the project.

The payback would come from the city and its partners who would purchase the energy. The city would benefit with increased jobs and an influx of wind manufacturers to the region, the plan states.

"Our claim to fame is creative solutions that bring economic development to regions based on renewable energy and energy efficiency," he said.

The idea to attract renewable energy industry to Carson was borne from an economic vitality plan developed by the city in partnership with the business community and interested residents. The Economic Vitality Coalition selected renewable energy industry as a way to boost the economy with jobs and business income.

Princeton was selected out of 14 proposals representing a combination of 59 different firms who expressed interest in the project.

An evaluation committee composed of representatives of all potential partners and led by the city's economic consultant Charlie Long, interviewed the three top companies -- ESI Engineering Services of Walnut Creek, Calif., Princeton and Sempra Energy Solutions of Los Angeles.

"Princeton gave the best total energy proposal that looked at a very broad spectrum of all the alternative energy and economic issues that would benefit Carson over the other two," Hoffert said.

The company proposes to look into hydro, wind, solar, geothermal and the use of landfill and wastewater treatment off-gasing products. Princeton was successful recently with similar work in the region of Baja, Calif., where they introduced new light fixtures and developed programs to reduce energy expenditures, Thompson said.

IF YOU GO

What: Carson City Board of Supervisors meeting

When: 8:30 a.m. Thursday

Where: Sierra Room, Carson City Community Center, 851 E. William St.