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TheMajesticMoose08 t1_izfahte wrote

Reply to comment by Anon324Teller in Residents ‘Horrified’ Over Proposed Solar Farm Near Waltham/Lexington Line by ak47workaccnt

Solar developer here (not the company developing this project). We would love to put solar in every grocery store parking lot but the owners don't want it there, even if we offer them money. The always say it's because it'll block the view of the stores and the signage - which is a ridiculous notion. As if people will suddenly forget where Walmart is because they put solar in the parking lot.

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enutz777 t1_izg1vsr wrote

Pitch them the idea that it is actually increased signage space where they can install led panels around the outside.

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TheMajesticMoose08 t1_izg2bvf wrote

Oh we have. Plus the added benefits of cash, covered parking for their customers, EV charging, etc. and they're still antagonistic to it.

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bigolebucket t1_izgnlcd wrote

Agreed, always good to co-locate with load but not always feasible. Carports are also MUCH more expensive than ground mounts.

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TheMajesticMoose08 t1_izgqdx7 wrote

Definitely agreed, but when it comes to commercial/large-scale solar creditworthiness of the user of the electricity is critical to getting any project financed.

It's a much safer investment to go community solar / feed-in tariff where you just get paid from the utility company or have an investment-grade credit buyer (like a corporation or municipality) than it is to go behind the meter and make a bet that the grocery store, movie theater, etc. is going to be in business for the next 25 years.

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bigolebucket t1_izgud4i wrote

Completely agreed, onsite C&I is a huge pain. On top of that it's all custom agreements and PPAs etc., all for say 500kW. My "better to co-locate with load" has outed me an electrical engineer, not PF/BD.

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