RFP: Municipal Facility Solar Photovoltaic Development

Location:	New York
Posted:	May 9, 2025
Due:	Jun 6, 2025
Agency:	City of Rochester
Type of Government:	State & Local
Category:	S - Utilities and Training Services
Publication URL:	To access bid details, please log in.

Project Overview

The City of Rochester is seeking proposals from Solar Energy Providers (Provider) to finance, design, install, own, maintain, and operate rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) systems at City of Rochester facilities, including:

Blue Cross Arena, 1 War Memorial Square, Rochester, NY 14614
Joseph A. Floreano Rochester Riverside Convention Center, 123 E Main St, Rochester, NY 14604
City of Rochester Public Safety Building, 185 Exchange Blvd., Rochester, NY 14614

Other City-owned facilities may be included in the proposal as options for consideration by the City. Please clearly identify all additional facilities proposed.

The City anticipates purchasing from the Provider all the energy output generated by the PV system under a solar power purchase agreement (PPA).

For more information, download the RFP:

Read the RFP

Timeline

Activity	Date
RFP released	May 9, 2025
Deadline for questions	May 16, 2025; 4:00pm EST
Responses to questions posted on this City webpage	May 23, 2025; 4:00pm EST
Proposals due	June 6, 2025; 4:00pm EST
Provider selection and award notification	September 2025
City Council approval of agreement with Provider	September 2025

Questions

Please email questions related to this RFP to Anne Spaulding, Manager of Environmental Quality at anne.spaulding@cityofrochester.gov by May 16, 2025 by 4:00 PM EST. To ensure that all respondents have a clear understanding of the scope and requirements of the RFP, the City will post responses on this webpage by May 23, 2025 at 4:00 PM EST.

Proposal Submission Deadline

Proposals must be submitted by June 6, 2025 at 4:00 PM EST. Submit proposals electronically via a file-sharing site link to:

Anne Spaulding
Manager of Environmental Quality
anne.spaulding@cityofrochester.gov

Attachment Preview

City of Rochester

Request for Proposals

Municipal Facility Solar Photovoltaic Development

Proposals to be received by 4:00 PM

June 6, 2025

Submit Proposals to:

Anne E. Spaulding

Manager of Environmental Quality

30 Church Street, Room 300B

Rochester, NY 14614

anne.spaulding@cityofrochester.gov

Request for Proposal

The City of Rochester (City) is seeking proposals from Solar Energy Providers (Provider) to finance,

design, install, own, maintain and operate rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) systems at the City of

Rochester facilities (the “Project”) including:

• Blue Cross Arena, 1 War Memorial Square, Rochester, NY 14614

• Joseph A. Floreano Rochester Riverside Convention Center, 123 E Main St, Rochester,

NY 14604

• City of Rochester Public Safety Building, 185 Exchange Blvd., Rochester, NY 14614

Other City-owned facilities may be included in the proposal as options for consideration by the City.

Please clearly identify all additional facilities proposed.

The City anticipates purchasing from the Provider all of the energy output generated by the PV system

under a solar power purchase agreement (PPA). It is expected that the PV systems will be installed on

the rooftops of facilities owned by the City, and that the City will enter into a lease or access agreement

with the Provider for the use of the rooftops. Please note that the PPA agreement and property lease

are subject to the approval of Rochester City Council. The City intends to enter into a PPA for a term

negotiated between the City and the Provider of at least twenty (20) years. The awarded Provider shall

apply for and manage incentives and tax credits available through the New York State Energy Research

and Development Authority (NYSERDA) and the Inflation Reduction Act and/or any additional sources of

funding.

Alternative solar financing mechanisms may be proposed in addition to, or in lieu of, a PPA, including

energy performance contracts or solar lease.

To enhance public education, each facility with rooftop solar installed must have a display describing the

project and showing in real time the quantity of renewable energy generated by the solar system and

the associated impacts of that generation (e.g. tons of GHG reduction, equivalent gallons of gasoline,

trees planted, or other relevant metrics).

All three buildings have roof warranties, the manufacturer will need to agree to have solar equipment

on their roof, or they would void the warranty. All three buildings have large square footages, however

the useable square footage may be reduced by roof top equipment, such as found on the main high roof

of the convention center.

Background

As outlined in the City of Rochester Municipal Operations Climate Action Plan and Rochester Energy

Plan, the use of renewable energy is an important aspect of the City’s climate mitigation strategy. The

facilities selected under this project will provide a large, visible demonstration of the City’s commitment

to renewable energy and addressing climate change in the city of Rochester. Along with long-term city

taxpayer savings from reduced electricity costs, this project will encourage other municipalities,

commercial entities, non-profit organizations, and residents to consider installing solar on their buildings

and create jobs for solar installers, including local residents.

Timeline

Activity

Time

Date

RFP Release

5/9/2025

Deadline for questions

4:00 pm

5/16/2025

Response for questions submitted 4:00 pm

5/23/2025

Proposals due

Provider Selection and Award

Notification

City Council Approval of agreement

with Provider

4:00 pm

6/6/2025

September 2025

The dates shown above may be subject to change within the City of Rochester’s sole discretion and

upon written notification as set forth herein.

Communications

All communications by parties who have indicated an intent to submit or have submitted a proposal in

response to this RFP (“Respondents”), including any questions or requests for clarifications, submission of

the proposal, requests for status updates about the proposal selection process and any other inquiries

whatsoever concerning this RFP shall be sent, in writing via email, to the following City staff person (“City

Contact”):

Anne E. Spaulding

Manager of Environmental Quality

anne.spaulding@cityofrochester.gov

No contact is permitted with any other City staff member with regard to this RFP during the RFP process

unless specifically authorized in writing. Prohibited contact may be grounds for disqualification.

To ensure that all Respondents have a clear understanding of the scope and requirements of this RFP, the

City will respond to all timely questions submitted via e-mail to the City Contact by the question deadline

stated above. Questions and the responding answers will be sent via e-mail to all Respondents who have

provided an e-mail address to the City Contact and will be posted on the City’s web page for this RFP. The

City’s failure to timely respond or provide responses to any questions shall not delay or invalidate the

City’s right to make a decision to award an agreement pursuant to this RFP.

The City will make every reasonable effort to keep Respondents informed about the RFP process.

Notifications about Timeline date changes, amendments to the RFP and other information about the

RFP will be sent by e-mail to Respondents who have provided an e-mail address to the City Contact and

will be posted on the City’s website for this RFP. The City’s failure to provide such information shall not

delay or invalidate the City’s right to make a decision to award an agreement pursuant to this RFP.

SCOPE OF SERVICES

The City is soliciting proposals from qualified solar providers to design, engineer, build, own, operate,

maintain, and decommission a turn-key installation of a rooftop solar at the below listed City of

Rochester facility site addresses. The goal of this RFP is to identify a Provider with the necessary

experience to ensure a fully-managed and well-executed process. The successful respondent will have

demonstrated experience designing, planning, scheduling, permitting, constructing, interconnecting,

and maintaining a solar PV system. Provider is responsible for all permitting and licenses, and should

include the cost of all permitting in their proposal. Provider is responsible for any roof modifications

necessary to maintain roofing warranties or to prepare the roofs for solar installation. Respondents

should be familiar with utility regulations, provide project financial analysis, and have established on-site

safety standards. The City reserves the right to modify the scope of the project at any time. The scope of

services provided by the Provider shall include all tasks required to finance, design, install, own,

maintain and operate the rooftop solar systems for the City. The scope shall also include, but not be

limited to, securing all permits and approvals from governing agencies and utilities, all labor, services,

permit fees, and equipment necessary to produce a fully operational PV system. The proposal shall

contain a detailed explanation of the complete project and description of all work tasks to be performed

by the awarded Provider.

The City of Rochester (City) is seeking proposals from Providers for rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV)

systems at the City of Rochester facilities (the “Project”) including:

Name

Blue Cross

Arena at the

Rochester War

Memorial

Address

Project Site Details

Roof Info

1 War Mem Square 125,000 square feet, installed

Rochester, NY 14614 2020

Warranty expires 2050

Annual Electricity

Usage (kWh)

3,285,579

Joseph A.

Floreano

Rochester

Riverside

Convention

Center

Estimated usable PV square

footage: 45,000 square feet

123 East Main Street 27,000 square feet, installed 2009

Rochester, NY 14604

Warranty expires 2034

1,882,530

Estimated usable PV square footage:

25,000 square feet

City of Rochester

Public Safety

Building

185 Exchange Blvd. 29,000 square feet

Rochester, NY 14614

Warranty expires 2032

2,892,056

Estimated usable PV square footage:

9,000 square feet

Aerial roof photographs and as-built drawings of the above facilities are included in this RFP as

Attachment 1.

The selected Provider shall work with the City and the roof manufacturers to ensure that any solar

equipment installed on the sites do not void any roof warranties. The Provider is responsible for any

costs associated with roof modifications necessary to maintain these warranties or to otherwise prepare

the roofs for solar installations.

The useable square footage of each facility may be reduced by roof top equipment or other structural or

design constraints.

If respondent finds an above location is not a suitable host site for a rooftop solar array, they should not

include it in their proposal and provide a brief explanation.

Additional City owned facilities may be proposed. Note that another large City facility roof may be

available, the William A. Johnson Jr. Terminal Building at the Port of Rochester, as it is scheduled for a

new roof in 2026 with approximately 14,000 sq. ft. of usable roof. The facility has an average annual

electricity usage of approximately 115,000 kWh.

Design, Engineering & Permitting

The Provider shall design and engineer the PV system to maximize solar energy resources, taking into

consideration the facility’s electrical demand and load patterns, proposed installation site, available

solar resources, existing site conditions, and other relevant factors. The Provider shall provide design

documents that include the following minimum information:

• Timeline/project schedule

• System description

• Equipment details and description

• Layout of installation

• Layout of equipment selection of key equipment

• Specifications for equipment procurement and installation

• All engineering associated with structural and mounting details

• All design and engineering associated with necessary roof modifications

• Performance of equipment components and subsystems

• Integration of solar PV with other power sources

• Electrical grid interconnection requirements

• Controls, monitors and instrumentation

• System performance monitoring annual estimated production from the array (kWh)

• System loss modeling (PVSYST or equivalent)

This is the opportunity summary page. It provides an overview of this opportunity and a preview of the attached documentation.

Daily notification on new contract opportunities

With GovernmentContracts, you can:

Find more opportunities and win more business
Receive daily alerts for all new bid opportunities
Get contract opportunities matched to your business

ONE WEEK FREE TRIAL

RFP: Municipal Facility Solar Photovoltaic Development

Attachment Preview

See also