Important Downtown Dallas Restoration Project Looks Up For Green Power

DALLAS, Nov. 16, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- A once-abandoned building on the edge of Downtown is being reincarnated as an eco-friendly, people-friendly mixed-use destination that offers coworking, loft living, green space, commercial office space and a coffee shop, and developers have been awarded a $300,000 grant to install a solar system to power the new venture.

The 60,000-square foot building, built in the 1930s and expanded in the late 1950s, is located at 1808 S. Good Latimer Expy. in East Cedars, near the Farmer's Market. Renovations began February 2016, and the building is expected to be ready for occupancy January 2018. One of the nation's premier green architectural design firms, GGO Architects, led by Gary Olp, FAIA and LEED Fellow, designed and directed the renovation of the project in partnership with GoodWork, led by Amy King, a company dedicated to incubating healthy environments for working and living.

"1808 from its conception is an innovative mixed-use re-development. Our goal is a coworking, business and residential community built around the synergies of design, business and sustainability," said Steve Kinder, 1808 building owner and CEO & Founder of LOFTwall. "As we worked with our partners to pursue LEED Certification, solar was on our wish list." The solar dream became a reality when the Dallas nonprofit group Downwinders at Risk (www.downwindersatrisk.org) chose the 1808 project to receive the final grant from their Sue Pope Fund for Pollution Reduction.

Dallas-based Sunfinity Solar (www.sunfinitysolar.com), a company serving residential and commercial solar customers, has been selected to design and manage the system installation. John Billingsley, Chief Executive Officer of Sunfinity Solar, says that this installation will be one of a small handful of solar systems operating in the downtown area.  

"The vision of the 1808 leadership team and the opportunity to help take a building from the early 20^th century into the 21^st century make this a unique, appealing project, and we're very honored to be part of it," said Billingsley.

The Sunfinity System will include 454 panels (149.8 kW) that will provide 45.8% of the building's power needs and feed excess power produced back to the electric grid. Over 20 years, this solar system is estimated by the Department of Energy to offset:

• 3,022 metric tons of carbon dioxide
• 24,000 pounds of SO2 (sulfur dioxide)
• 12,000 pounds of NOx (nitrogen oxide)
• 172,000 milligrams of mercury

The carbon sequestered is equivalent to taking 638 cars off the road for a year, planting 78,317 trees over 10 years or preserving 24.1 acres of U.S. forests from conversion to cropland in one year.

"Solar power makes sense for businesses of all sizes – from for-profit concerns to schools and non-profits - for the same reasons that it appeals to homeowners," said Billingsley, who notes that Texas is particularly suited for solar. According to GoSolarTexas, Texas has the second greatest technical potential for photovoltaic (PV) rooftop installations given its location in the Southwest and relatively low tree coverage.

"The potential financial savings are impressive, and they go on for years," Billingsley added.  "Solar is about choice, and businesses have the choice to be energy independent by owning their own power and locking in a percentage of their building's needs for 30-plus years.

"The environmental benefits are just as compelling, since solar taps a clean, endlessly renewable energy source that doesn't require other resources, like water and fuels, to produce or transport."

When asked why this project was compelling, Architect Gary Olp said, "It has been rewarding to take this building from a dilapidated, overlooked, abandoned building and transform it to one of the most healthy working and living environments in Dallas."

ABOUT 1808 / GoodWork
The mixed-use redevelopment at 1808 S Good Latimer Expy. is a building for independent collaborators, growing businesses and community cultivators. Along with its coworking partner GoodWork, this 1808 historic warehouse in the Cedars -- a creative and industrial sector on the edge of Downtown Dallas -- has a vision to create a community built around the synergies of design, business, and sustainability. 1808 features a variety of work places and amenities inspired by nature -- encouraging movement, wellness, creativity and collaboration. It offers two green courtyards, a coffee shop, event space, coworking, 2nd floor office space, and hotel/residence loft living. The building is being designed with environmentally and wellness-friendly features paramount. It is pursuing both LEED and WELL Building™ certification. www.1808.biz; www.goodwork.co

ABOUT GGOArchitects, Corp.
GGOArchitects (www.ggoarchitects.com) is an innovative, environmentally focused studio. The practice was founded to effect a fundamental change in the application of the craft of architecture based on an understanding of environmental stewardship. The efforts of the award-winning studio reflect an enterprising approach to energy efficiency, passive solar techniques, natural day lighting and enhanced fresh air systems with an emphasis on reducing construction waste and the use of natural, non-toxic building materials.

ABOUT Sunfinity Solar
Sunfinity Solar (www.sunfinitysolar.com) is headquartered in Dallas with full-service operations throughout California and North Texas and active expansion in Texas and other states. Sunfinity Solar offers complete system design (solar panels, inverter and metering), installation (including handling all permits and inspections), financing and ongoing system support for residences, businesses and agricultural concerns of any size that want to realize the many financial and environmental benefits of solar power.

SOURCE Sunfinity Solar

Related Links

http://www.sunfinitysolar.com