Last week saw the completion of the first of up to 140 solar rooftop panel installations under a $35 million initiative that aims to transform a 4-square-mile area of South Los Angeles into a model of sustainability.
The initiative, known as South L.A. EcoLab, was set up last year by the South Los Angeles Transit Empowerment Zone and involves a host of community nonprofits and government agencies. Besides solar rooftop panel installations, the five-year initiative involves tree plantings, an e-bike lending program, construction of electric vehicle charging stations, a car-sharing program and various measures to promote the use of mass transit.
All the programs target residents in a 4-square-mile area of South L.A. bounded by Vernon Avenue on the north, Western Avenue on the west, Central Avenue on the east and 61st Street on the south.
Funding comes from a $35 million grant from the California Strategic Growth Council’s Transformative Climate Communities Program; the funding period started last July and ends in June 2028.
Last week’s solar rooftop panel installation was carried out by the L.A. affiliate of GRID Alternatives, one of the partners in the South L.A. EcoLab initiative. The Oakland-based nonprofit does solar panel rooftop installations and takes other steps to promote renewable energy use in communities that often suffer the impacts of industrial and transportation pollution.
Plans call for up to 140 solar-rooftop-panel installations on atop single-family homes in the 4-square-mile zone.
“There has not been a lot of alternative energy investment to date in South L.A.,” said Teresa Perez, director of grants administration for the Los Angeles affiliate of GRID Alternatives.
As for the other elements of the South L.A. EcoLab initiative, the e-bike lending program started up a couple months ago after 250 e-bikes had been distributed to various nonprofits in the region for them to lend out to residents for up to six months. Also, according to Vanesa Iniguez, program manager for South L.A. EcoLab, about 130 trees have been planted to date out of about 4,000 planned for the area.
The other programs are still in the planning stages, including the siting and building of four electric vehicle charging stations, each with up to four charging stalls.
