Lawton Center to Be Site of First Solar Roof

Ketch Ryan and Kirk Renaud in the Town of Chevy Chase pushed hard to make this happen and I know that they'll be especially thrilled by the news in this press release from Councilmember Roger Berliner (D-1):

Jane Lawton Center in Chevy Chase to be Site of First County Solar Roof Program

At Urging of Councilmember Roger Berliner, Community Building Will Serve as Model for County Buildings

ROCKVILLE, Md., June 21, 2010—Montgomery County Councilmember Roger Berliner announced today that the Leggett Administration has agreed to make the Jane Lawton Recreation Center in Chevy Chase the site of the Division of General Service’s first solar roof program. Councilmember Berliner, in collaboration with the Town of Chevy Chase, has been working for more than a year with local solar cooperative members and the Montgomery County Department of General Services to honor this facility and Jane Lawton in this way.

Councilmember Berliner has been urging the County to make the Lawton Center a model for the County’s program to retrofit more public buildings with solar energy. In May, Councilmember Berliner wrote to the Department of General Services “in hopes of speeding up progress on a no-cost option to install solar panels on the Lawton Center in Bethesda.” The County announced today that it had agreed to the solar panels.

“I am pleased that the Leggett Administration and General Services Director David Dise have firmly committed to moving forward expeditiously in making the Lawton Center a photovoltaic (PV) installation site for the County's planned retrofit of County roofs,” said Councilmember Berliner. “It is fitting that this much used and much loved recreation center will now also be a site for environmental education and a showcase for the positive role solar energy can play in our County's future. This is the kind of visionary leadership that embodies the spirit of Jane Lawton and her living legacy.”

The Lawton Center, which was formerly known as the Leland Community Center, is located at 4301 Willow Lane within Leland Neighborhood Park in Chevy Chase. The building serves as a recreation center and houses the Town of Chevy Chase offices and a Day Care Center. In 2009, the center was renamed to honor Ms. Lawton, who worked her way from PTA volunteer to mayor of the Town of Chevy Chase to Maryland delegate representing District 18.

In addition, Director Dise has indicated that the project will qualify under the local small business initiative and that this work will be reserved for local vendors.