Flexera Designs First Delaware Solar Carport

The Refuge at Dirickson Creek, an upscale single-family and townhome development a few miles west of Fenwick Island, recently cut the ribbon for a new solar and conservation project that is projected to save the community approximately $19,000 a year.
 
The 37.53-kilowatt system, designed and built by Flexera Inc. utilizing Delaware-made Motech panels, will pay for all community electrical expenses, including pool, pool house, clubhouse, street lights and pond system irrigation. It will pay for itself in three to four years and will also generate income through earned Solar Renewable Energy Certificates.
 
But the development’s solar project presented some unique challenges. The community areas are largely wooded, and there wasn’t enough clubhouse roof space with the correct southern or southeastern orientation to collect solar energy or enough open space for an aesthetically pleasing ground-mounted system.
 
To overcome these obstacles, said Flexera Vice President Ben Farr, Flexera’s design team came up with the idea of erecting a separate solar panel-covered structure in the only available space with optimal sunlight, the parking area. They then located and worked with a California design group to engineer what is now Delaware’s first solar panel-covered parking structure for The Refuge.
 
“This is going to help us keep from raising homeowner association fees, no matter what electric rates do,” said Refuge Renewable Energy Ad Hoc Committee member David Patrick. “Rates are going to keep going up, and now we have control over that.”
 
The solar and conservation project got off the ground when Refuge resident Carolyn Bray saw an article about another local development, Forest Reach, in a local newspaper and approached the Refuge’s HOA board at the community’s annual meeting. On the spot, says Bray, the community joined together to support the idea and formed a committee to research the feasibility of going solar for shared community electric needs.
 
HOA board Secretary Barry Mones said the committee contacted several regional alternative energy firms before deciding on Flexera Inc. of Harbeson, the same company that designed Forest Reach’s system.
 
“They answered all of our questions in great detail, did detailed projections, worked with our developer, Coleman Bunting, came up with the solution of building a parking structure with solar on top so we’d have enough panels, and took care of every aspect of the project,” Mones said. “We’re very pleased with the results.”
 
The Refuge is a joint development of Bunting Construction Group and R.E. Gray Associates. Bunting Construction has been developing and building residential and commercial properties on the Delaware-Maryland coastline since the 1970s, including 20 residential subdivisions with a total of 2,000 homes from Rehoboth Beach to Ocean City, Md.
 
Bunting helped offset some costs, and community members agreed to pay a one-time special assessment fee of $288 to cover installation. Flexera also performed a CEM certified energy audit of the Refuge common areas and recommended conservation measures that could be taken to further reduce power costs.
 
With “built to last” as his company’s hallmark, Bunting said during the ribbon cutting that he was extremely pleased to be part of a project that is paving the way to cleaner air and containing energy costs for his clientele. All future homeowners in the development, he said, will benefit as well.
 
Wilgus Associates’ Refuge property manager Veronica Radalin said that through community members and the developers working together, Refuge homeowners saved 7 percent of their total HOA annual budget, which will help contain future HOA fees. The system will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 30 metric tons.
 
“This solar energy system is truly owned by the community,” said Bray. “Homeowners comprised the committee; homeowners voted for a special assessment that enabled the project to move forward, and homeowners will reap the financial and environmental benefits of the system.”
 
Since the system was installed, six Refuge residents have installed photovoltaic systems on their homes and were talking about the benefits at the ribbon-cutting festivities.
 
“A lot of times, people have to see results before moving forward on installing solar systems on their homes,” said Flexera sales director Arnie Stein. “Once they understand the process and see their neighbors’ results, they can’t wait to get on board. We try to be as informative as possible and make it easy for them.”
 
Patrick, a retired engineer, said he is one of those residents. “I encourage everyone who can afford it to look into it,” he said.