Helena to cut ribbon on solar array at Bill Roberts Golf Course

Helena’s new solar array at Bill Roberts Golf Course is set to pull double duty for the city’s budget and the people who use the course. City officials say the 50-kilowatt system should offset about 80% of the electricity used by Muni’s Sports Grille and the Pro Shop, saving an estimated $10,349 a year and about $80,087 over the life of the project.

The city will mark the installation with a ribbon-cutting at noon Wednesday, April 22, at the golf course, 2201 N. Benton Ave. Along with the panels, the project includes a solar-powered exterior light at the entrance designed to illuminate the crosswalk and improve safety for pedestrians and staff moving in and out of the property.

Bill Roberts is one of Helena’s most visible municipal properties, an 18-hole, 6,782-yard championship course established in 1925 and home to Muni’s Sports Grille. The new array turns that familiar city asset into something more than a recreation site: it is now part of Helena’s energy bill strategy, with direct consequences for operating costs at a city facility that serves golfers, diners and meeting traffic alike.

The project did not appear overnight. A March 20, 2024 Level II energy-audit report by Iconergy identified Bill Roberts Golf Course as one of the sites where solar photovoltaic designs could work as part of a broader goal of increased sustainability for municipal facilities. The same report listed Miranda Griffis, Helena’s Sustainability and Recycling Coordinator, as the city contact and also pointed to the Wastewater Treatment Facility as another candidate for solar work, suggesting the golf course is part of a larger municipal test case rather than an isolated upgrade.

By July 15, 2025, Helena Bill Roberts Golf Course Advisory Board minutes said the panels were already up and completed, though they were not yet operating. Those minutes also noted the project was funded by a public works grant, placing the array squarely in the city’s public-assets conversation, not just its environmental one. The same board discussions touched on trail-fee policy for Finn Cycles and e-bikes, along with winter kill from 2023-24 that affected some collar areas near greens, reminders that the course’s finances and operations are always tied to day-to-day maintenance decisions.

Helena’s sustainability page says the city has spent nearly 20 years working to reduce its carbon footprint, and that the City Commission adopted Resolution 20347 in 2017 to require annual sustainability reporting. The city also says it continues to make energy-efficiency and sustainability upgrades to buildings, parks and practices, while offering homeowners a zero-interest Renewable Energy Loan program of up to $12,000 repaid over 10 years. The Bill Roberts array fits that pattern, but its value is especially local: lower utility bills, a safer entrance and a visible example of how Helena is trying to stretch public dollars farther.