The YMCA of San Diego County wanted to offset its electricity costs and increase its commitment to sustainability—while reinvesting the savings to better serve its community members.
Working with the team at Home Energy Systems, a SunPower Elite Dealer, the Y chose to install the SunPower® HelixTM solar solution across the roofs and parking lots of six campuses, for a total system size of nearly 2.5 MW.
The six solar installations are expected to provide savings of approximately $80,000 annually, which will be reinvested into programs and services for area youth and families.
Luis D’Carpio
Vice President of Facilities & Sustainability YMCA of San Diego County
The YMCA of San Diego County has a mission to improve the health and well- being of everyone it serves. As the second largest YMCA organization in the nation, the nonprofit provides a variety of programs and services focused on youth development, healthy living and social responsibility, serving 400,000 people throughout the greater San Diego area.
In 2017, the organization’s leadership decided to make a strategic commitment to solar energy as part of its broader goal of strengthening the community. The Y installed solar rooftop and carport systems on six of its facilities throughout the county.
With nearly 4,000 high-performance SunPower® solar panels on its rooftops and parking lots, the solar project is expected to save the Y about $80,000 per year, and produce enough energy to offset 80-90 percent of the Y’s electricity use. Financed through a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), the nonprofit did not have to invest any money upfront, but locked in low guaranteed electricity rates for the next 20 years. PPAs are ideal for nonprofits and other organizations who prefer that their resources directly serve their constituents and not be tied up in long-term capital projects.
In the first year of operation alone, the combined systems will generate more than 4 MWh of electricity—the equivalent of powering 378 homes with electricity for one year.1
For the 5,000 people employed at the YMCA of San Diego County, supporting solar is a point of pride. And for the families who park under the solar canopies, the extra shade is a welcome reprieve from the Southern California sun.
The residential-only entity HES Solar has redefined its scope and has narrowed its focus to home solar service and home battery service. The impact of 2023 California regulations to home solar projects has required this company truncation; we regret the elimination of new home energy installations from our offerings. HES Solar now concentrates on supporting existing systems with maintenance and repair services for HES Solar and non-HES Solar systems and remains available for workmanship warranty work on qualified HES Solar systems.
For commercial solar and commercial energy storage design, installation, service, and O&M offerings, please visit the HES Renewables website hesrenewables.com.
A note on the state of California residential solar: The residential solar industry has faced significant financial hurdles in the last few years as a direct result of hostile policy, most notably NEM 3.0. Our primary trade partner, SunPower, went into Chapter 11 in August, 2024, and a majority of other solar companies, large and small, have been forced to close, leave California, or restructure. We are glad to remain available as a home energy service group to support our customers and provide maintenance and repair for home systems that have been orphaned by other company closures.
We recognize your frustration with this news and never intended for our beloved 24-year-old residential solar business to curtail its offerings.