TCHC retrofits the Henry Street and Lambertlodge buildings with solar panels
Solar panels have been an important stream of work for TCHC, with new panels recently installed at 6 Henry Street and 2 Lambertlodge Avenue.
Toronto Community Housing (TCHC) continues to work towards modernizing its building portfolio. This includes adding new technology that will enhance tenant comforts, make buildings more energy-efficient, and reduce operating costs and greenhouse gas emissions. Solar panels have been an important stream of work for TCHC, with new panels recently installed at 6 Henry Street and 2 Lambertlodge Avenue.
TCHC’s President and Chief Executive Officer Sean Baird was on-hand to showcase the retrofit at 6 Henry to City Councillor Dianne Saxe, a renown environmental and energy lawyer and advocate.
The 105-unit Henry Street building now boasts a new roof with 266 photovoltaic solar panels. The panels provide 125,000 kilowatt hours of electricity to the homes.
“We just finished this project, and I’m pleased to say this renewable energy system will generate 11 per cent of the total annual electricity consumption on-site,” said Fernando Carou, TCHC’s Director of Smart Buildings and Energy Management. “This new system will also reduce carbon emissions annually by approximately 43 tons and over the 25-year lifespan of the system, reduce emissions by approximately 1,100 tons.”
Fernando says the $370,000 investment will pay for itself around the halfway mark of its 12-year lifespan.
“The system also has a bi-directional electricity meter,” he added. “This means it measures both consumption from the grid as well as on-site generation of electricity to the grid. So, Toronto Hydro can settle the electricity bill accordingly each month.”
At 2 Lambertlodge, the 64-unit building has been installed with 42 solar panels. Fernando says the solar panels will generate nearly one-third (29.2 per cent) of the electricity that the building requires, while at the same time reducing carbon emissions by 49 tonnes annually.
“Energy is one of the largest operating costs we have in TCHC buildings,” said Sean. “That cost increases with the inflation rate. By investing in renewable energy, we’re helping to stabilize our budgets, lower future utility bill increases and realize a return on our invested capital.”
Councillor Saxe was delighted to see the project at 2 Henry come to fruition: “It’s always great to see renewable energy sources retrofitted in older buildings. This will absolutely help modernize TCHC and work towards the City’s emissions goals.”
TCHC is the nation’s largest housing provider. Investing in solar technology and other renewable energy systems will help TCHC support the City of Toronto’s climate targets. It also helps make sure that social housing gets more sustainable over the coming decades.
