Parking gets easier, greener today at Pike & Rose (Photos)

Property owner Federal Realty held a ribbon-cutting yesterday at its Pike & Rose development, to celebrate the debut of the largest solar canopy on a retail garage in the state of Maryland. The parking garage itself will open to the public today.

Having an easier parking experience at Pike & Rose will likely be the primary concern on the minds of those dining and shopping at the growing new mixed-use center. But above their heads will be 855 photovoltaic panels arranged in three arrays, capturing solar energy that gets converted to AC current by inverters installed underneath.

Solar arrays

One of the Solectria
inverters that turns
the DC current from
the panels into AC power

What does this mean in practical terms? The canopy will generate 350,000 kw of output each year. That is the equivalent of 27,000 gallons of gas, or 259,000 pounds of coal.

Jay Corbalis, a development
associate with Federal Realty,
welcomes public officials to
the ribbon-cutting ceremony

The solar installation is part of a "broader commitment to sustainability" the developer has made, Federal Realty Development Associate Jay Corbalis said. Those include 21,000 cubic feet of green roof space, on-street bioretention systems capable of treating 100% of the site's stormwater, and 3 LEED Silver-certified buildings. Elsewhere in Federal Realty's portfolio, there is a green roof functioning as an urban farm at Bethesda Row, 10 solar canopies in 4 different states, and a solar project the company is installing in New York that could fully-power their associated developments there when complete, Federal Realty Executive VP and COO Dawn Becker said.

Stacy Bradford,
Marketing Manager, NRG eVgo

But some of those initiatives are also found within the new Pike & Rose garage itself, in the form of electric vehicle chargers installed and operated by NRG eVgo. That firm has a network of 27 such charging stations in the DMV area, and the largest fast-charging station network in the nation, according to Stacy Bradford, Marketing Manager for NRG. "We're so happy that Federal Realty is a partner that shares in the same vision" of sustainability, Bradford said Wednesday. She said the company's network is designed to "provide range confidence to the driver," but also to locate stations at places "drivers want to stop at," such as Pike & Rose.

The new garage contains one Level 3 fast charging station, and five Level 2 chargers inside and around the structure.

Scott Wiater, President
Standard Solar

Scott Wiater, President of Rockville-based Standard Solar, said his company has solar canopies on buildings across the country, "but this is in our backyard." The company designed, installed and will operate the canopy, which Wiater said is expected to last more than 25 years.

The energy generated by the garage canopy will primarily power the garage, said Chris Brown, Sustainability Manager for Federal Realty. Elaborate holiday lighting on Grand Park Avenue won't be lit by electricity from the garage, for example. Brown said that renewable energy projects such as this give Federal Realty the option to sell electricity directly to retail tenants of its properties in some cases.

Dawn Becker,
Executive VP & COO of
Federal Realty

Dee Metz, representing County Executive Ike Leggett (who was unable to attend due to back surgery), commended Federal Realty for its "proactive approach to clean energy," saying Pike & Rose is "a national model" for sustainable development.

County Councilmember Tom Hucker (D-District 5) called the garage a "shining example of what can be achieved." Hucker lamented that Montgomery County's government has stumbled in its own efforts to switch to sustainable energy sources. "We're not doing as well as we should be," he said. Hucker, who is the lead member for environmental issues on the Council, said private firms like Federal Realty "are really setting the example for the public sector."

Montgomery County Councilmember
Tom Hucker

The achievement wasn't exactly easy to pull off, Corbalis said. It had its origins in a suggestion by former Federal Realty VP of Development Evan Goldman, Corbalis recalled. "See if we can get solar on top of this garage we're building," Goldman said. Being a new addition to the firm at the time, Corbalis said he eagerly took on the assignment, quickly finding out what a challenge it would be.

Montgomery County Councilmember
Hans Riemer said, "Federal Realty is
showing what the new model can
be for all of Rockville Pike"

It also required putting together the right team of individuals and companies. The finished product unveiled Wednesday "wouldn't have been possible without the work of several key partners," Corbalis noted. In addition to the private firms mentioned above, the partners also included the Maryland Energy Administration and Montgomery County. Other public officials in attendance included County Councilmember Hans Riemer (D-At-large) and representatives of Council President George Leventhal and Congressman Chris Van Hollen. Ironically, Councilmember Roger Berliner - who lives at Pike & Rose - was not in attendance.

Wednesday's late-morning sky provided its own challenge, initially casting clouds over a sun-themed ceremony. But sure enough, the sun made an appearance by the end, as evidenced in the top photo.

Lining up for the big moment

Whoa, where did that guy
come from?
Photobombed!

*snip*