CBPU Solar Field

Solar Field Ribbon Cutting

How It Happened

After demolition of the Midwest Foundry in 1990, the site has sat barren for 27 years and has not been used for any new developments. CBPU leadership had the vision to turn the unused land into a useful space. The area was graded and leveled, which led to the design and construction of the Coldwater Solar Field Park. This project presented a unique opportunity for Coldwater to turn a Brownfield site into a Brightfield site. CBPU is very proud of this project and continues their mission to protect the environment and the investments of their citizens. After making it through the many legalities of utilizing the site, it had to be cleaned up, the ground balanced and new fencing erected. Florida-based NextEra Energy Resources LLC installed the farm under a contract with American Municipal Power of which Coldwater and MSCPA are members.


Marc Gerken, President & CEO of American Municipal Power who spoke at the solar field open house said, “Solar energy is very cost effective, solar energy is free. You are looking at a state of the art, clean energy project. You took a brownfield site in the middle of town and turned it into something quite beautiful, and you don’t usually see that. You made lemonade out of lemons here."

State Senator Mike Shirkey, who was also attended the open house has had a solar field at his home since 2011. "The people of Coldwater are on the leading edge of maximizing the sites value. Every horizontal surface and half of every vertical surface, within 20 years, will be producing energy,” Shirkey said. “In one hour a day the sun projects, on the surface of the earth, more energy than the entire world uses in a year. We just haven’t figured out how to harvest it yet. Solar is the way to do it."

View An Arial Flyover of The CBPU Solar Field