Pearlridge Shopping Center

Mall contemplates solar future

June 20--Parking a car at Pearlridge Center could become a cooler experience for shoppers.

Oahu's second-largest mall is exploring the feasibility of installing photovoltaic solar panels over uncovered parking stalls on the 45-acre property.

The plan is to generate electricity at a long-term stable price for mall tenants, and provide more shaded parking for patrons.

About half of the roughly 6,000 parking spaces at Pearlridge are uncovered.

Fred Paine, Pearlridge general manager, said shaded parking spaces at the mall typically fill up first, so added cover from the hot sun for nearly all parking spaces would be a tremendous customer benefit.

"Providing shaded parking would be fantastic,"â??he said. "It's something really desired in Hawaii."

The plan is in an early stage of exploration, with three photovoltaic consultants examining the property to see whether such a system is feasible.

Paine said PV power is a focus of Glimcher Realty Trust, the Ohio-based mall owner that bought Pearlridge last year with financial partner Blackstone Group LP. Glimcher in January began a project covering New Jersey's largest outlet mall, Jersey Gardens, with a 4.8-megawatt PV system satisfying 11 percent of the property's electricity need.

Covering the 1.3 million-square-foot mall's rooftop with solar panels makes that system one of the largest single-rooftop PV systems in North America, according to Glimcher.

Paine said Glimcher decided to consider Pearlridge, which has 1.1 million square feet of retail space, for the company's second mall PV system.

There was, however, a design challenge. Rooftop setups are typical for PV systems on commercial and residential buildings. But mall rooftops at Pearlridge are covered with parking, except for the Macy's store on which the retailer already installed a PV system.

"The challenge for Pearlridge is we don't have any roof," Paine said. "It's all parking."

Canopies of PV panels over parking appears to be a growing trend in alternate design.

An affiliate of Chevron Corp. installed a 414-kilowatt PV system over 177 parking spaces earlier this year at Oceanic Time Warner's headquarters in Mililani. A 280-kilowatt parking canopy also exists at the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa.

If a PV system proves feasible for Pearlridge, it could become the biggest or one of the biggest in the state covering an existing business.

Pearlridge Center Considers Solar | Conservation Hawai'i

On average, Kahului, Maui enjoys approximately 276 days of sun per year. Not far behind, Honolulu, Oahu sees about 271 days of sun while Lihue, Kauai receives 240, and Hilo, Hawaii, 168. Given these numbers, it is no surprise that businesses and residents of the Aloha state are looking increasingly toward solar power for energy.

Now Glimcher Realty Trust – the owner of Pearlridge Center – is considering what the sunshine can do for Oahu’s second largest mall, and in turn what the addition of solar panels can do for shoppers and the earth.

Glimcher is familiar with retail rooftop solar panels, as they recently set in motion a plan to cover Jersey Gardens – the largest outlet mall in New Jersey – with photovoltaic (PV) solar panels. This project is no small task as it involves covering 1.3 million square feet with the 4.8-megawatt PV system. But the rewards will be well worth the effort; the energy collected from the solar panels is expected to provide 11 percent of the mall’s electricity needs.

According to the Star Advertiser , PV system plans for our own Pearlridge Center are in the beginning stages. At this point, PV consultants are assessing the feasibility of a solar panel project. The biggest challenge to such a project at Pearlridge Center is the lack of rooftop space. With the exception of the Macy’s store, the remainder of the roof is used for parking spaces. And with 1.1 million square feet of retail space, the shopping center cannot afford to sacrifice the parking area. But what Glimcher and the PV installers can do is consider building canopy PV panels.

This type of solar panels will not only harness energy from the sun, decrease reliance on fuel, and save money for mall tenants, but they will also provide much-needed, shaded spaces for shoppers.

Canopy panels have become a bit of a solar trend. At the Milpitas Unified School District in California, solar parking canopies produce 100 percent of the district’s power during the summer, when there is the greatest demand for electricity in California. In Contra Costa, California, 34 canopies on three colleges meet about half of the colleges’ energy needs. At the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens in Ohio, a solar parking canopy system covers 800 of the 1,000 parking spaces in the main parking lot, providing the zoo with about 20 percent of it’s energy needs. And here in Hawaii, canopy PV panels can be found at the Oceanic Time Warner’s headquarters in Mililani and the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa.

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