Phase one of Cerritos College’s three-phase plan to build a series of solar panels in parking lots 1 and 10 will begin construction near the end of December.
Cerritos College’s Executive Vice President of Business Services, Felipe Lopez shared how the project will provide a more cost-efficient and environmentally friendly way to power the school as part of the college’s sustainability goals.
Lopez stated that this will save the college around $20 to 30 million over the next 30 years and will offset about 85% of the college’s energy usage.
He explained that the college won’t pay the upfront costs for this project– it negotiated a deal with Forefront Power to build the project and will be receiving energy at a reduced and fixed rate from them as part of a Power Purchase Agreement.
According to the Department of Energy’s Better Buildings initiative, “A PPA is an arrangement in which a third-party developer installs, owns and operates an energy system on a customer’s property.
“The customer then purchases the system’s electric output for a predetermined period.
“A PPA allows the customer to receive stable and often low-cost electricity with no upfront cost, while also enabling the owner of the system to take advantage of tax credits and receive income from the sale of electricity.”
Lopez explained that, since the college has fixed the price rate that it buys energy from Forefront Power, it won’t pay as much as it would otherwise from energy-provider Edison as rates tend to go up over time – even if rates didn’t go up, the college would still save money.
He also said he wasn’t sure if the excess energy would be sold back to the grid and that Forefront Power would know more about that.
Additionally, he said that there won’t be a battery backup system for the project as projects of this nature don’t usually have them – if the college decided to install one, it would’ve resulted in extra upfront costs.
The solar panels will be directly above the parking spaces and will still be available for people to park there once construction is finished.
During the day, the panels will provide shade to the parking lot and lighting will be installed to keep the parking lot lit during the night.
According to Lopez, the first phase of the project will start furthest away from the PAC and the construction will shift closer to the PAC during phase three – phase two will take place in Parking Lot 1.
He said that there shouldn’t be much impact on parking as Parking Lot 10 usually isn’t full and there is enough extra space on campus to make up for the temporarily lost parking spots – the loss of parking space could be more impactful as construction reaches the PAC building, though.
Parking Lot 10 is located next to the Performing Arts Center, Campus Police, New Falcon Way and near Studebaker Road – Parking Lot 1 is located On Alondra Boulevard and is next to the gym, stadium and tennis courts.
Phase one is estimated to be from December, 2024 to July, 2025; Phase two is estimated to be from February, 2025 to December, 2025; and phase three is estimated to be from May, 2025 to September, 2025.
Lopez noted that this schedule is subject to change, however.
Normally, it would be the director of physical plant and construction services in charge of this project, however, due to the former director Anthony Parker leaving the position absent, Lopez is now the one in charge.
The college is currently recruiting for a replacement director to fill the position.
