Solar parking shades will spare students some heat, save Modesto district some dollars
Modesto City Schools anticipate saving hundreds of thousands of dollars every year once it builds solar parking structures at four of its high schools.
“The solar structures will offset between 65-85% of utility costs at each site. Once fully operational, we expect to save $700,000 in annual electricity costs for the four high schools,” Linda Mumma Solorio, spokeswoman for the school district, wrote in a message to The Bee.
Davis, Beyer, Downey and Johansen are the locations for solar parking shades. High school facility improvement funds from general obligation bonds will pay for the projects, which will run about $20 million all together, Mumma Solorio said.
The district broke ground on its first solar parking shade structure at Davis High on March 7. The structure being built in the student parking lot will provide 40,000 square feet of shade and offer a 14-foot clearance for tall vehicles.
This shade is expected to save $96,000 in year-one energy savings and offset 2,400 tons of carbon dioxide (the equivalent of 20,000 trees being planted), according to a news release.
Davis’ solar shade will cover 120 parking spots, Mumma Solorio, which will be available on a first-come basis each day.
At the other three schools, the solar panels are expected to provide 1,170 total shaded parking spaces: 420 at Beyer, 400 at Johansen and 350 at Downey.
Construction for the Davis High School’s solar shade is expected to be completed by summer 2023, said Mumma Solorio. During the summer, construction will start on the other three structures.
