The Democrat caption boldly states ” the rooftop solar system is projected to cut firm’s annual power bill by $5,000.” The news article had no information on the cost of system. 

Here is what was omitted:

After one ten minute phone call, Tallahassee Reports found out the system cost $170,000. A quick calculation indicates that saving $5,000 a year will allow Mr. Diestelhorst to break even after 34 years and that is if there is no other costs.

Why would Mr. Diestelhorst, a businessman, sign-up for such a questionable financial deal – could it be his love of the environment or maybe his infatuation with solar power?

Maybe he signed up because he received approximately $140,000 in government subsidies. That makes his cost approximately $30,000 and his break even period only 6 years. 

When asked why the cost and subsidy information was omitted, the journalist said this information would be covered later when he had more time.

Now the question is was the omission an editorial blunder or an institutional bias? Either way, the citizens of Tallahassee depend on a responsible source for information from the Tallahassee Democrat and they clearly did not get that in Thursday’s edition.

Why?…In a letter, responding  to the concerns of Jackie Pons, Leon County School Superintendent, Mayor Marks wrote:

“It is unfortunate that many City, County, and State Governments are in a situation where budgets must be cut and yet continue to provide the high level of service to which many have grown accustomed. Reducing the school crossing guard budget was an extremely difficult decision for our City Commission to make, as were many others that impacted many important service areas in our community.”

But if budget issues are the problem, why fund the “Schools on Solar” program. One possible answer is outlined in the City’s “GREEN INITIATIVES 2008 Annual Report”. In that publication, the “Schools on Solar” program is listed as a “Go Green Tallahassee” initiative award winner.

Another possible answer for the cuts is the direction coming from the City Commission. In a number of interviews of city employees by Tallahassee Reports, it has been revealed that the directive from the “4th Floor” is to focus on “going green.” The recent budget decisions seem to reflect this priority.  

According to the City’s website, the solar program’s “main focus… is education. “Schools on Solar” will provide students information on energy conservation and renewable energy.”  This education does not include any discussion of the immediate costs associated with solar power. In fact, as with the Trousdale Solar Project, information on the City’s website severly over states the economic benefit of the project.

Update..in a document detailing Tallahassee’s $118,000,000 wish list from the yet to be passed stimulus bill, the City is asking for $5,000,000 to expand the “Schools on Solar Program”.  If  recieved, the $5 million would be spent on electricty generation that is 5-10 times more expensive than what we currently pay.  In addition, 70%-80% of the $5,000,000 stimulus will go to Arizona to help create jobs making the solar panels.

Update.. Mayor Marks and City Commissioner Gillum opposed the crossing guard budget cuts. However, during the same meeting,  all five City Commissioners voted for the creation of the Green Department  at a cost of $200-$300,000.

• Should The City of Tallahassee Assign a Cost With “Going Green” Initiatives?
• Do You Think “Going Green” Initiatives Should Be Promoted By Government and Implemented By Individuals or Implemented by Government?
• Should the Cost of “Going Green” Initiatives Determine Which Initiatives Should Be Implemented?

In late-2000 the City of Tallahassee installed Solar Panels at the Trousdell Aquatic Center. The City of Tallahassee claims the following on their TalGov website:

The 10 Kilowatt Photovoltaic (PV) solar electric generation system located at the Trousdell Gymnastic and Aquatic Center on John Knox Road, provides up to 14,000 kWh of electric power a year, enough to run the average 1500 sq. ft. home in Tallahassee. The PV System is “grid connected”, providing power for general distribution to the rest of Tallahassee when not being used at the Aquatic Center.

Tallahassee Reports has found through a Public Record request that over a 6 1/2 year period the system generated 60, 283 kwh of power. This is a yearly average of 9,518 kwh. This is 32% less than the 14,000 kWh claim posted on the City’s website.

The system has been down since June 2007 due to a bad inverter. New parts were ordered and the city was billed $48,600 on Spetember 11, 2008.

To date, the tax dollars invested in the purchase and operation of the system totals approximately $203,427. Over the period of operation the cost per 1000 kwh is approximately $3370. If the system were to run for an additional 7 years with no additional costs, the cost per 1000 kwh would drop to approximately $1600. The current cost for the City of Tallahassee Electric Utility to generate 1000 kwh is $150.