The Solar Display at Metlox Plaza is designed as an educational solar powered display in a public area to increase awareness on the benefits of renewable energy. The goals of the program are two-fold.  First is to showcase an aesthetically pleasing solar array that can fit in with the architectural elements of the Metlox Plaza, while serving as a high-performing bifacial solar system (a bifacial solar system utilizes glass on both sides of the panel in order to collect energy from both sides of the solar panel, which increases efficiency of the panel). Though the benefit of bifacial panels will be minimal in this case, the bifacial panels offer an attractive architectural element, demonstrating potential design options that designers may incorporate in their own projects.

The second goal of the solar display project is to provide an electronic educational display on an LCD screen powered by the solar array to expose the community to the benefits of renewable energy, including how much solar power the system is generating. Proposed display content will include general information, real time metrics regarding power production, and sample power use equivalents. In addition to the LCD display, a wireless option is being explored, whereas the instructional content can be streamed and businesses within range can display the information remotely.

The solar display project is a small solar system that is not designed to take the Metlox area and surrounding businesses “off the grid.” However, the project will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 126 tons of CO2 over the 25-year life of the project. This is the equivalent to providing an offset of enough greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to driving a medium-sized car 228,545 miles. In addition, enough electricity will be generated to offset the escalator at Metlox Plaza, as well as the City's weekly Farmers Market.

Please direct questions to the City's Public Works Department at (310) 802-5313