Charged Up: Supersized solar system powers new parking deck By Erin Crowell “The best market for solar is out over parking lots,” architect Robert Noble said in a May 2010 Green Tech Media article. The founder of the California-based company, Envision Solar, realized back in 2007 that parking lot and carport roofs were ideal for collecting solar power. The idea has been adopted on the roof of the new Old Town parking deck in Traverse City. Currently under construction, the $7.9 million, four-level structure will be home to one of the largest solar arrays north of Muskegon. “This is a huge array,” says Matthew Vajda, owner of Voltage Electric, the Traverse City company which received the electrical bid on the parking deck. The 186-panel, 40.2 kilowatt array will provide close to 15% of the structure’s total energy needs. “Residential solar systems typically run around 5 kilowatts, which is still a pretty large system,” Vajda says. “The 40.2 kilowatt array is the largest north of Grand Rapids. They’re currently building a larger system in Muskegon.”
LOCAL BIDS The Old Town parking deck project is managed by CWS Architects, the TC firm responsible for such projects as the much-anticipated Grand Traverse YMCA building on Silver Lake Road and the Cathedral Barn at the Grand Traverse Commons. Having worked on other projects with Voltage Electric, CWS architect Ray Kendra was comfortable with using the company as the solar installer. “We are one of just a few local companies that won bids on the parking deck,” says Vajda. “It’s very exciting.” Vajda agrees that a parking deck is an optimal location for using solar. “For one thing, you’ve got the real estate. You’ve got the roof – a space that you wouldn’t use for anything else. Second, the electricity is right where you need it, versus racks upon racks in the middle of a field. Also, because it’s a LEED certified job (an economical and environmental standard set by the U.S. Green Building Council), you get more return on your investment doing solar, versus planting some trees or shrubs,” he adds. Although solar is pricey—this particular endeavor costing around $240,000—the return is about 20 years, “a huge payback” according to Vajda, who also serves as a board member on the Home Builders Association. Currently, Michigan is limited in its solar incentives, but Vajda believes that will change soon. “Green building is something I’m strongly in favor of and we really just want to be ahead of the curve,” he adds. Vajda anticipates solar array installation on the parking deck will be completed sometime by the end of June, beginning of July.
Contact Voltage Electric at 231-946-3678 or visit them online at www.voltageelectric.net.
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