Aerial photo of 425 Fore Street parking garage solar array
Via the Portland Press Herald , ReVision Energy managing partner Fortunat Mueller discussed the installation of a new canopy-array atop the parking garage at 425 Fore Street:
"It's a very popular thing to do on parking garages and surface parking lots in more mature solar markets," Mueller said. "It's wasted space up there over the top of all of those garage decks." The man behind the project in Portland is Tim Soley, co-founder of East Brown Cow Management, a real estate investment, development and management firm in Portland. The firm owns the parking garage, which has Five Guys and Gelato Fiasco as retail tenants. About six years ago, Soley installed 96 solar panels on the south-facing edge of the garage; they generate about 22,000 kilowatts of electricity. Since then, he's been waiting for the right time to do more. Over the last few weeks, 578 solar panels were assembled and attached to seven long-span canopies, made by the Georgia-based Quest Renewables, in a surface parking lot behind the garage and hoisted by cranes to the top of the three-story garage. The 114-by-124-foot canopy, which is attached to existing structural steel beams, provides additional covered parking on top of the garage without losing any of the 423 parking spots.
"It's a very popular thing to do on parking garages and surface parking lots in more mature solar markets," Mueller said. "It's wasted space up there over the top of all of those garage decks."
The man behind the project in Portland is Tim Soley, co-founder of East Brown Cow Management, a real estate investment, development and management firm in Portland. The firm owns the parking garage, which has Five Guys and Gelato Fiasco as retail tenants.
About six years ago, Soley installed 96 solar panels on the south-facing edge of the garage; they generate about 22,000 kilowatts of electricity. Since then, he's been waiting for the right time to do more.
Over the last few weeks, 578 solar panels were assembled and attached to seven long-span canopies, made by the Georgia-based Quest Renewables, in a surface parking lot behind the garage and hoisted by cranes to the top of the three-story garage. The 114-by-124-foot canopy, which is attached to existing structural steel beams, provides additional covered parking on top of the garage without losing any of the 423 parking spots.
