Public invited to grand opening of North Peace Museum solar project

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The public will be able to see solar panels installed at the North Peace Museum during a grand opening next week.

The project, which cost around $90,000, was funded by various sources, including $21,000 from the North Peace Historical Society itself.

According to the museum’s curator, Heather Sjoblom, the final $42,000 came from the Capital Gaming Grant this spring.

Additional funding came from Western Financial ($5,000) and Alliance Pipeline ($5,000), as well as grants from TC Energy ($5,000), Shell Community Grant ($5,000), and Pembina ($7,500).

Sjoblom says the project is in the museum’s current strategic plan, which will be completed by the end of this year.

“We’d been thinking about it for a while,” said Sjoblom. “We’ve been working since about 2020 on getting grant funding and sponsorship.”

“It’s very exciting. It’s something where we kind of thought maybe we’re dreaming big. You’re not successful with every grant, so sometimes you wonder whether the project would get off the ground.” 

“But it’s kind of awesome to lead the way, both environmentally as a non-profit and to be more economically responsible.”

Sjoblom adds the panels were installed in May, and the museum was accredited for the new installation in June.

She says it will save the museum $4,000 yearly on its electricity bill. Sjoblom says eventually, this would allow enough savings to hire a second full-time staffer.

“The idea is that it helps us better preserve and present local history,” said Sjoblom. “We’d like to be able to better serve our community and better record and share our history.  It’s going to help us.”

Next week’s open house will feature a presentation explaining the project, a tour showing visitors the panels, and free admission to the museum for the hour.

The grand opening for the North Peace Museum’s solar panel project is scheduled for Wednesday, September 25, from 2:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m.

More information can be found by calling the museum at 250-787-0430.