The DOE has selected Knoxville as one of twelve cities to receive solar energy grants [1]:

U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel W. Bodman today announced that DOE will make available up to $2.4 million to 12 cities across the country selected as Solar America Cities, chosen for their commitment and comprehensive approach to the deployment of solar technologies and the development of sustainable solar infrastructures. [..] Cities designated as Solar America Cities, which will each receive $200,000 from DOE to integrate a variety of solar energy technologies throughout the city, include: Denver, CO; Houston, TX; Knoxville, TN; Milwaukee, WI; Minneapolis & St. Paul, MN; Orlando, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Sacramento, CA; San Antonio, TX; San Jose, CA; Santa Rosa, CA; and Seattle, WA.

According to the DOE press release, the selected cities will also receive hands-on technical assistance with integrating solar technology into energy planning, zoning, local regulations, best practices, solar financing options, and incentive programs. The grants are part of the DOE Solar American Cities [2] program. $200K ($2.4 million overall) is a rounding error in terms of federal funding for alternative energy technology research and programs, but we should be happy they are doing anything at all and take what we can get. (Here's a previous report on Florida's solar incentive program [3] and some others around the South along with a discussion of some of the issues involved. Some interesting comments, too.) UPDATE: Here's the City of Knoxville's Solar Cities grant application [4], courtesy of Bill Lyons. There are some interesting ideas, such as integrating solar technology into the new transit center, solar powered affordable housing development projects (as mentioned yesterday), education/outreach programs at the Ijams nature center, and lots more.