Solar panels are seen on top of the Appleton municipal building June 16, 2026. PC: Fox 11 Online
APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — The city of Appleton is in the first stages of adding solar panels to the roof of the public library.
Money for the project comes from a reimbursement for the library’s geothermal system, which uses the temperature beneath the ground to heat and cool the building.
“The funding for these solar panels are from those funds that we received from the government as part of the Inflation Reduction Act,” said Appleton Project and Resiliency Manager Steven Schrage.
The city got around $2.5 million from the federal government for the geothermal system. Installation of the solar panels is expected to cost $700,000. That’s double what was initially projected for the work. Schrage said it’s because the city didn’t have a full year of utility data available during budgeting.
“Now that we have that full year of data, we have a better understanding of the utility use profile for the facility. To get the best use of the dollars we went and asked for additional funds to be added to the project,” he explained.
The solar panels on the roof of the library would generate around 30% of the building’s total energy usage. According to city officials, that would save them around $70,000 annually.
“As utility rates increase, we’re going to get the direct benefit of that,” Schrage said. “Every kilowatt/hour it produces, that’s one less kilowatt/hour we have to pay.”
The city expects to recoup the money spent on the solar panels in under seven years.
As for why the library was chosen for the solar panels, Schrage said, “It’s a great education opportunity for people that come. They know that the library they’re in is renewable energy for the heating and cooling, and then the power for that on sunny days is coming right from the sun.”
Once the panels are installed, the city is looking to create an educational center to show how the renewable process works. It expects work to begin in the fall.
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