MERIDEN — From the earliest plans for a new library in Meriden, around 2018, the goal was to build an electric-powered, energy efficient building.
But when construction got underway years later amid the COVID-19 pandemic, rising costs changed things.
Many efficiency measures remained in the final plan for Meriden Library when it opened in the spring of 2023. But the installation of solar panels had to be “shaved off the budget in order to make the building happen,” Brad Atwater, Plainfield’s facilities manager, said in an interview on Wednesday.
Now that early vision has become a reality when a solar array designed to cover all of the library’s electricity needs came online this week.
“That’s what we envisioned and we’ve now finally completed it,” Atwater, who served as project manager for the solar project, said. “It’s gratifying.”
The array is the first on a town building. The panels play a crucial role in powering the library’s all-electric design, including energy efficient heat pumps, Atwater explained.
The array is also a key step in Plainfield’s goal to derive 100% of electricity for municipal buildings from renewable sources by 2030.
“Public libraries serve as community leaders and trusted stewards of public resources,” said Jim Allen, director of Plainfield libraries, in a news release. “By investing in renewable energy, we are reducing long-term operating expenses while demonstrating practical solutions that benefit both our community and our environment.”
In 2025, the Library Board of Trustees budgeted about $14,600 for electricity for both of the town’s libraries.
A team of volunteers spearheaded the solar install in late May, according to the release, while paid professionals completed the electric and design work.
The library used a $15,000 grant from the Association for Rural and Small Libraries to partially cover the cost of the $28,000 project. The remaining cost came from private funds, Allen said Wednesday.
Plainfield residents approved the library construction project in 2021 after years of contention under the condition that no tax dollars be used. The resulting building is energy efficient and ADA-compliant.
“This investment in the future of the library ensures that the Plainfield Libraries will continue serving residents as a welcoming, innovative, and environmentally responsible community resource,” Allen wrote in the release.
