If Santa wants to land his sleigh on the roof of the Wilton Library this year, there may not be too much room. The library is in the midst of a solar installation. A new photovoltaic system will create electricity for its lighting, heating and air conditioning and computers ”“ all the essentials in the backbone operations of the library.
According to Rich Hubli, the library”™s building operations manager, “This project has been in the works for a while and the economics, timing, the investors and the technology have all come together for us to be able to put this in place.”
The library analyzed proposals from five installer/investors and awarded the project to Northeast Smart Energy and Soldel LLC. Northeast has offices in Hartford and Ridgefield. Financing for the project is through a Power Purchasing Agreement with Soldel LLC, a private firm based in Norwalk.
Rob Sanders, an architect and vice president of the Wilton Library Association”™s board of trustees, who was instrumental in defining the scope of the project, said, “This project is something we”™ve all wanted for the library. With an expansive flat roof, it was natural for WLA to employ a solar array for cost savings and reducing our energy footprint.”
The 408 solar panels will cover about 11,000 square feet. The library expects to cut its electric costs by about two-thirds.
