We are very excited that Petaluma City Schools will install solar shade structures at nine campuses across the district. These large steel structures each support several solar panels and will provide protection from sun and rain, cost savings on electricity, and a reduction of our carbon footprint. The project is underway and we want to thank you in advance for your patience with any logistical challenges that we will navigate during construction. These district-wide, solar shade structures will reduce our annual energy consumption by over 1,250,000 kilowatt hours. The long term anticipated savings of over $8,500,000 will go towards continued support of Petaluma City Schools initiatives. We are proud to participate in this Clean Energy Act (Proposition 39) funded project that will reduce the amount of carbon dioxide being released into the atmosphere.

The solar projects were originally scheduled for an August 1, 2016 completion, but were unexpectedly delayed as we lost the services of our Division of State Architect (DSA) Inspector to an unanticipated illness. Unable to proceed without a DSA inspector, and bound by contract to continue the project, we were left waiting two months for another inspector to be available. We will now resume the projects with expedited timelines while striving to minimize distraction to the learning environment. We are hopeful for a completion within 6-8 weeks.