Boulder City focusing on solar power to help weather economic storm

The future is as bright as the sun for Boulder City, where more than 8,000 acres of city land has been or will be dedicated to solar development.

Mayor Roger Tobler in his State of the City address delivered Thursday evening focused on the community's "energy zone," a large tract of land dedicated to the development of solar power.

In recent years the city has partnered with solar companies Sempra and Solar 1, which have developed facilities that generate more than 120 megawatts. That figure will rise to about 1,400 megawatts once other sites now in the planning stage are developed.

Seth Masia of the American Solar Energy Society said that is enough sun-harnessed energy to provide electricity to 420,000 homes.

Boulder City is among the larger cities in the state from a geographic perspective, with more than 200 square miles within its boundaries. The available land, the Southern Nevada sunshine and the city's proximity to the Hoover Dam power grid make it ideal for solar development.

Tobler thinks the city's partnerships with solar companies will be a financial panacea for Boulder City.

He said continued development of the energy zone would continue to be an "invaluable asset" to the city that could eliminate its debt, restore capital reserves, stabilize other city funds and rebuild the city's recession-ravaged ending fund balance.

In fact, Tobler said, the lease revenues the city collects from solar development have played a key role in maintaining services and programs with little interruption.

With the lease payments, Tobler said, the city will receive upfront payments totaling $8.5 million from the companies.

Tobler said another benefit of solar power development is the potential creation of 2,000 to 3,000 jobs.

"These are construction jobs," he said before his address. "But that's still huge. This is a big deal, and nobody's talking about it."

Other 2011 highlights include the widening of U.S. Highway 93 through Hemenway Valley.

After the Hoover Dam bypass bridge opened, traffic in Boulder City, with a population of about 15,000, was as congested as rush hour in Las Vegas.

Tobler said the project provided a measure of relief, but recent jams caused by holiday travelers show that widening the road was a temporary solution.

"The only viable long-term way to address this problem will be the construction of Interstate 11, which includes the bypass around Boulder City," he said.

The proposed interstate, which would connect Las Vegas and Phoenix, got a boost last November when Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., inserted language in a federal highways bill that made the route eligible for funding.

Tobler said the Regional Transportation Commission seeks a public-private partnership to build a bypass around Boulder City.

Boulder City appears to be on a rebound from the recession. For the first time in three years, the city's budget projections were on target in 2011.

Tobler attributed the modest recovery to expense reductions, the aforementioned solar lease revenue and a slight uptick in property tax receipts.

"This has been a difficult few years," he said. "And it has required the best in all of us to meet the challenges of a struggling economy."

Contact Doug McMurdo at dmcmurdo@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5512.

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Comments

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1. popo.g Jan. 27, 2012 | 1:14 p.m. Report Abuse

   Tobler seems to have Boulder City on the right track. I wonder if Boulder City has looked into making main thoroughfares one way street to help relieve traffic concerns. Harry Reid should abandon his high speed rail idea and redo our interstate system. By adding a lane on I15 from Las Vegas to Los Angles would do wonders, it would reduce driving time, and save fuel, once you hit three lanes traffic runs more smoothly. A interstate from Las Vegas to Phoenix would also do more for transportation than high speed rail.

2. k.b Jan. 27, 2012 | 12:56 p.m. Report Abuse

   @Oscar.Jones,
   "It only has to last until November."... Oscar, I don't believe this has whole lot to do with temporary jobs or lowering any one's power bill either. I have said several times before that it makes no sense to buy a solar powered calculator, a fifty mile extension chord, and a smart meter hooked to it in Southern Nevada. However if you are in an area the doesn't have solar or green energy producing capabilities and you are required to buy green power, it makes perfect CENTS to those selling, especially when the tax payer is funding your enterprise.

3. Oscar.Jones Jan. 27, 2012 | 10:32 a.m. Report Abuse

   k.b.: This additional energy to the power grid will not lower anyones Power Bill. And the temporary "thousands of jobs" are Construction/Initial Installation jobs that will likely last less than one year. Once the installation is complete, there would be thousands of layoffs. That's a lot of people unemployed in little Boulder City. But the temporary jobs boost to the economy, would be touted by the Democratic Party, as a dramatically improving economy. This very scam is being played out in small cities all over the US. It only has to last until November. There is no sustainability to these Construction/Installation set-up jobs. And ZERO reduction to anyones monthly utility costs. You might even be looking at additional surcharges to help pay for the program.

4. k.b Jan. 27, 2012 | 7:53 a.m. Report Abuse

   "energy to provide electricity to 420,000 homes." "This is a big deal, and nobody's talking about it." They got that part right, that's a lot of power.

5. dodgerchuck Jan. 27, 2012 | 7:49 a.m. Report Abuse

   good to hear boulder city's on the mend.i visit the community on my days off for golf at the aforementioned boulder creek course. i'm always impressed with the cleanliness of the area.the staff there are very congenial.

6. Oscar.Jones Jan. 26, 2012 | 10:21 p.m. Report Abuse

   The President needs to look as if he actually created jobs. Even if those jobs don't last past July, he needs numbers to promote the image that the economy is getting better, and thousands of new jobs have been created. Who else is buying and installing Solar Panels for energy? Only Government Associated and Financed operations. And who is Financing the Government? We are.

7. Oscar.Jones Jan. 26, 2012 | 10:13 p.m. Report Abuse

   Maybe they can get some great business tips from the Solar Business in NLV, that just laid off 200 Full time employees? Or from Solyndra Solar Panel Manufacturing Plant, that was granted 500 million Tax Payer dollars to open, and in 2 years, went belly up. Solar Energy may be a non polluting energy, but the reality of it is that Solar Panels and related equipment is so expensive, and the efficiency of Solar Panels is about 20% efficient, compared to their cost. And that does not include Maintenence. This baloney about jumping on the Green Bandwagon is a Democratic scam to waste Tax Dollars on failed programs that are not efficient, or sustainable. But they gamble on the scam working until November.

8. Jerry S..Dickinson Jan. 26, 2012 | 9:57 p.m. Report Abuse

   I bet this Mayor was a proponent of the Boulder City Golf Course. Someone should read him the other story in the paper. The one about the alternative fuel company that is slashing it's staff to skeleton. Morons. Why would anyone want to impress the clown prince of D.C.