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Sun Shines On North Bay’s Homeless
SPG Solar, Inc. Installs Solar System on Mary Isaak Center

San Rafael, CA … November 23, 2005  SPG Solar, Inc., (SPG) one of the nation’s leaders in the integrated development, design and construction of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, has installed a 22 kilowatt solar system on the roof of Petaluma’s Mary Isaak Center. The facility is operated by COTS (the Committee on the Shelterless), and offers hope and help to homeless persons in Sonoma County by providing food, shelter and housing, and results-oriented programs to prepare people for a home of their own.

“This has been a wonderful project,” said Dan Thompson, SPG’s President. “We have worked with a terrific team whose single vision was to put panels on the roof. The Petaluma City Council; Bonnie Gaebler, the City Housing Administrator; the COTS staff; Burbank Housing; Midstate Construction; Kodama Diseño architects – every person and organization involved with this facility wanted it to be green. Working together, they found the way and the funds. We are very pleased to have been chosen as their solar contractor, and to have helped bring their vision to creation.”

Located in Petaluma, the Mary Isaak Center is 22,000 sf.  The 22 kW system combined with a new  A-6 rate schedule recommended by SPG, is reducing electricity costs by about 45% for the year by eliminating the most expensive day-time consumption, while producing the maximum credits through Time-of-Use PG&E billing. The gross cost of the system was $161,500. After a state rebate of $60,000, the net cost of the system was $ 101,500. The annual energy savings is estimated to be $10,072, resulting in a simple payback of about 10 years.

“This was a great partnership among the city, designer, builder, project manager – everyone associated with the facility, “ said Roger Kirkpatrick, Associate Executive Director of COTS. “Because we did not have sufficient roof space, we could not put in a full-sized system to bring our electric bills to zero. But we were able to identify a system size and design,  coupled with a new PG&E rate schedule, that resulted in the best return on investment from this installation.  We put this bid out to six solar firms, and SPG definitely gave us the most service for the best cost. They have been great to work with – flexible, on deadline, and passionate about solar.”

About COTS COTS offers help and hope to homeless persons in Sonoma County by providing safe shelter and housing, helping people develop steady incomes and helping them get back under a roof of their own. We help homeless families become stable and break the cycle of homelessness by teaching homeless parents to make their children's needs a high priority and to provide a safe, loving and secure home for their children. COTS serves approximately 500 single adults each year through the Mary Isaak Center. Programs such as Rent Right and Work Right teach people budgeting, work and life skills. These, together with our internship programs, case management and counseling, prepare residents for a home of their own. www.cots-homeless.org

About SPG Solar, Inc.: SPG was founded in 2001 in response to California’s rolling blackouts and skyrocketing energy prices.  SPG is the industry's most experienced developer, designer, and installer of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems for homes, businesses, and large-scale commercial and government facilities. SPG's commitment is to build the highest-performing solar PV systems with the highest return on investment. The result is clean, reliable electricity that reduces or eliminates customers' electric utility costs. SPG designs and constructs the most powerful large-area on-site solar energy systems in the nation. Recent projects include the 1.18 (DC) megawatt Butte County Solar Center, which received the largest renewable energy rebate in California history totaling $4.2 million in 2004; and the 1.06 (DC) megawatt Butte College system, one of the largest community college solar installations in the country. SPG is currently completing a solar PV system for the Kentfield School District in Marin County, which will make it the first and only school district in California that is 100% solar.  www.spgsolar.com