SUBMITTED BY

DC Department of General Services (DGS)

APPLICANT’S REQUEST
Preliminary and final approval of site development plans

PROJECT
New Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Arrays
Plummer Elementary School
4601 Texas Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20019

PROPOSED ACTION
Approve as requested

PROJECT SUMMARY
DC DGS has created an exciting project for the city at a scale that implements onsite local solar power
generation within each Ward. The projects will be owned, operated and maintained under a 20 year
power purchase agreement.

The Department has awarded a local team comprised of DC-based and regional firms that have a track
record demonstrating the capacity, resources, equipment and local workforce to design, permit, finance
and build solar projects. DC Solar provides a CBE-led entity that has designed and installed more than a
total of 200 solar power systems with a capacity of more than 100 MW, and has financed, owns and
operates plants providing more than 1.5 MW of solar power.

The DC Department of General Services is requesting preliminary and final approval for the construction
of a solar photovoltaic panel array including the installation of ancillary transmission equipment
(equipment cabinets and transmission lines) on the Plummer Elementary School. The solar PV array will
be located on the existing rooftop. The rooftop solar array will generate approximately 81 megawatt
hours (MWh AC) of electricity for facility use annually, reducing annual grid consumption approximately
13% and off-setting 56 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year. This rooftop project site will not have
major line of sight visibility to the public. The project will not require tree removal.

KEY BENEFITS
 The project is consistent with the existing Plummer Elementary School Long-Range Plan, and
does not conflict with the master plan.
 The project delivers clean onsite power generation, provides electricity directly to the police
station and has the ability to send unused power back to the grid.
 The project promotes and achieves energy conservation, and contributes to the Mayor’s green
energy and education goals.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Site

The Plummer Elementary School is located in Washington, DC at 1145 C Street, SE. The solar array will
be installed on the existing facility roof without physical alteration to the building structure as shown in
Figure 1.

Figure 1: Vicinity Map Showing the Plummer Elementary School and Location of Project Site

The Proposed Site Profile

The Plummer Elementary School site is one of six alternate DC DGS sites that has been awarded to DC
Solar (A Joint Venture formed to submit a proposal to the District of Columbia Department of General
Services for the On-Site Solar Power Purchasing Agreement at Various Municipal Facilities, DCAM-14-CS-
0123) utilizing a PPA contract to design, install, and maintain solar panel arrays. The visual impact of the
solar panels will be largely mitigated by their height above street level, low installation height, and 4 to 8
foot set back location on the rooftop. The solar array at the Plummer Elementary School will cover an
area of approximately 3,812 square feet. The DC Solar array represents about 14% of the existing roof
area. The installed panels will be approximately 9.5 inches above the roof surface at their highest edge.
Existing roof drains will be unobstructed. The array will include approximately 181 solar PV panels as
shown in Figures 2 through 7.

Figure 2: Plummer Elementary School Site Plan

Figure 3: Plummer Elementary School Current View

Figure 4: Plummer Elementary School Solar Array Plan

Figure 5: Plummer Elementary School PV System Ground View

Electrical Components
The key electrical components include the PV inverters and utility panels to house control and
monitoring equipment. The solar inverters and utility panel will be located on the roof. DC disconnects
located at the inverters.

Figure 6: Multiple Renderings of Solar Array Elevation & PanelClaw Ballasted Roof Mounts
Attachments

1a., 1b., 1c. PV Panel, PV Mount, and Inverter Cut Sheets

2. PV Accumulation Panel Cut Sheet (Typical View)

3. Site Drawing PV1 with Dimensioned Set Backs

Attachments 1a, 1b, 1c - PV Panel, Rooftop Mount, Inverter Cut Sheets
Attachment 2: Typical Accumulation Panel, AC and DC Disconnects for PV Solar
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