Westmoreland County Housing Authority plans to lease former state prison property for solar power project

The Westmoreland County Housing Authority is hoping to save millions of dollars in energy costs over the next 25 years with two solar power projects that would benefit Hempfield Manor and a warehouse, officials said.

The housing authority plans to have a $2.28 million solar power array on as many as 10 acres of the former SCI Greensburg state prison property adjacent to Hempfield Manor, as well as a $670,000 array on the rooftop of its warehouse building in Hempfield, said, Michael Washowich, housing authority executive director.

Washowich told the authority board Tuesday that with the two projects and the possibility of selling excess energy to the electric transmission grid, the housing authority “will be saving millions and millions of dollars” during the 25-year lifetime of the arrays.

“There’s only one direction (electric prices) are going — that’s up,” he said.

The authority awarded contracts for both projects to Energy Independent Solutions of Green Tree.

The solar power array connected to Hempfield Manor could reduce the $150,000 a year electric bill for the 202-unit apartment building. It is projected to generate 1,000 kilowatts of electricity, Washowich said. It will take about six years for the authority to realize a return on its investment.

Both the housing authority and Hempfield supervisors this week authorized the negotiation of a lease for up to 10 acres of the former state prison property off Route 119. Housing authority officials said they would pay $1,000 a month to lease the land.

“We haven’t negotiated all the terms of that yet,” said township manager Aaron Siko.

The smaller warehouse rooftop array will generate nearly 278,000 kilowatts and take about nine years for the authority to realize a return on its investment, Washowich said. Both projects are expected to be complete during the third quarter of 2026.

The housing authority wants to expedite the work because the solar power tax credits under the federal Inflation Reduction Act are set to expire at the end of the year, Washowich said. Because the housing authority is a non-profit, it would not receive tax credits, but rather a reimbursement of about 50% of the cost, said Erik Spiegel, authority director of architecture and engineering.

The array that will provide power to Hempfield Manor would be the first use of the 94-acre former state prison property along Route 119 that Hempfield bought in mid-2023.

Demolition of the old prison and other buildings is wrapping up in a project being coordinated by the township and Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corp. Work started earlier this year and is being paid for through a state grant.

“Demolition of the structures is, for all intents and purposes, complete,” Siko said. “Compacted fill concrete will begin being crushed and placed here in January and then the site should be back to a pad-ready development for late spring.”

The township in mid-2023 bought the former state prison for $3.5 million with the intention of redeveloping the land, which is zoned for commercial use.

The medium-security prison closed in 2013 with state officials citing maintenance costs and a declining inmate population. It was built to hold 900 inmates and employed 360 people. It had been vacant since.

The property was sold at a state auction in 2015 for $950,000 to Carlisle businessman David Goldsmith, who later titled it to Verdant Holdings LLC. Goldsmith announced a plan to build a veterans rehabilitation center there, but that project never materialized.

The property was foreclosed upon in 2018 and later sold at a sheriff’s sale for close to $147,000 to Midwest Bank of Detroit Lakes, Minn., before being bought by Hempfield.