Updated October 23, 2020
Through a competitive process, Seattle Central College was awarded $200,000 through Seattle City Light’s (SCL) “Green Up Grant” program to install a 72 kW solar system on the roof of Broadway Edison (BE)! BE is nearly 500,000 square feet— making up nearly 20% of the Seattle Colleges network (i.e. North Seattle College, Seattle Central College, and South Seattle College) building space. The Green Up program is a volunteer opportunity for SCL customers to donate an extra $3 or more on their utility bills. By doing so, customers support renewable energy development and education in Seattle.
Seattle Central leveraged the $200,000 from SCL to secure another grant of $204,000 from the Washington State Department of Commerce. As currently developed, the 72 kW project will cost approximately $512,000 and will generate about $6,000 in annual electricity savings. The solar project is one part of a much larger energy efficiency retrofit of BE taking place over summer/fall 2018. Construction on the solar project is expected to begin in fall 2018. In 2019, anyone occupying BE can put a smile on their face knowing that some of the electricity they are using is coming from solar panels on the roof. For those that want to see the panels first hand, the project will include a ladder and railings to allow for safe viewing. Due to the placement of the panels, not everyone will be able to visit in person, so a camera will be installed to allow others to view them on their computer, tablet, or phone.
Here is the output (MWh) for the first full year of operation.
Here is an snapshot of the online dashboard for a peak behind the scenes
We want to send out a special thanks to Dave Ernevad and the rest of the Seattle Central facilities team for pulling this together, as well as one of the main consultants on the project, McKinstry. Seattle Central College is excited to continue to support the movement into cleaner energy and making our college more sustainable!