Burlington Electric Department Announces Plans to Build Solar Parking Canopy at Pine Street Office

Burlington, VT – Burlington Electric Department (BED) today announced plans to build a 128-kilowatt (kW) timber-frame solar parking canopy at its Pine Street office. The project, scheduled to come online in 2027, will cover BED’s 13 visitor parking spaces and is expected to produce approximately 136 to 152 megawatt-hours (MWh) of electricity annually, equivalent to the amount of electricity needed to power between 27 and 30 Burlington homes. The solar canopy will feature bifacial panels that can produce some power from the underside of the panels even if the tops of the panels are covered with snow. SunCommon was selected through an RFP process to construct the project, which will be owned and operated by BED. Burlington previously was named one of the nation’s top cities for per capita solar capacity by Environment America in its Shining Cities report.

“Burlington has a long history of leading on renewable energy, and this project is another example of how we can turn our commitment into local action,” stated Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak. “By installing a solar parking canopy at a City facility, we’re making smart use of land that already has been developed, reducing emissions, and continuing to model how we build a cleaner, more resilient energy future for Burlington.”

“BED is excited to add another solar resource within Burlington that builds on our history of supporting in-city solar projects at our own BED facilities and other City properties, including solar at the Burlington International Airport, the solar research center at McNeil owned by UVM, and solar power purchase agreements and net metering installations on rooftops,” stated Darren Springer, BED General Manager. “We are proud to partner with SunCommon to install this project, which will help BED continue to lead by example with our own facilities, where we also mow with electric lawn equipment, feature electric bikes, vehicles, and trucks for our fleet, and offer public EV charging stations for community use. We are excited to utilize federal incentives while they are still available to support this project and to source a significant amount of U.S.-made content to access bonus federal incentives.”

The project will be funded through BED’s Net Zero Energy Revenue Bond, which was approved by voters in November 2024. The Burlington Electric Commission voted unanimously in favor of the solar canopy project at its September 9, 2026, meeting.

BED plans to apply for a Clean Electricity Investment Credit (CEIC), a federal tax credit that is designed to encourage investment in qualifying clean-electricity facilities, and which is being phased out by federal legislation passed last year. The credit can provide a base 30-percent investment credit when applicable prevailing-wage and apprenticeship requirements are met, with additional bonus amounts potentially available for projects that satisfy energy-community and domestic-content requirements. BED will seek eligibility for the following potential enhancements:

• 10-percent energy-community bonus: The designation of 585 Pine Street as a former Superfund site subject to controls, monitoring, and remedial requirements, provides a possible basis for qualification under the federal energy-community brownfield category.
• 10-percent domestic-content bonus: BED expects the project to satisfy the applicable domestic-content requirements based on the use of U.S.-manufactured and -produced project materials.

If all applicable requirements are met, these incentives would reduce the project cost by up to 50 percent.

“Projects like BED’s Pine Street solar canopy show what’s possible when we pair smart solar development with thoughtful design and strong local partnerships,” stated Mike McCarthy, President of SunCommon. “This project puts clean-energy generation directly into a Burlington parking lot, uses a beautiful timber structure, and turns an existing piece of parking infrastructure into an asset that will produce clean electricity for years to come. We’re proud to partner with BED on another project that helps move Vermont’s clean-energy transition forward.”

“New solar projects like Burlington Electric’s solar canopy are a win across the board, making existing infrastructure more productive by producing clean, affordable, and reliable power that helps reduce New England’s dependence on dirty oil and natural gas plants,” stated Peter Sterling, Executive Director of Renewable Energy Vermont. “We’re pleased to see Burlington Electric using a Vermont business to bring this project online and furthering their investment in local solar generation, which helps keep more of our energy dollars in-state.”