The sun shines brightly on venerable seafood house OCEAN AVE. A popular seafood restaurant situated at the base of the iconic Santa Monica Pier will be the first business to go solar under an initiative sponsored by City Hall, which seeks to make the city energy independent by 2020.
The Lobster, a local fixture since 1925, has entered into an agreement with Sacramento-based SunTechnics Energy Systems to install solar tiles along the restaurant’s roof, cutting electricity use by 10 percent, according to Laurel Rosen, director of sales and marketing for The Lobster.
The restaurant, which will also install a solar hot water heater, has already completed an extensive assessment of its operations, making immediate changes to help it become more “green” by discontinuing the use of plastics and cleaning products that are not environmentally friendly.
“There are several reasons why we wanted to be first in line for this, the most important being that we felt it’s the right thing to do,” said Rosen, who jumped at the chance to participate as soon as she heard of the program. “Being where we are — at the cornerstone of the community — we felt we would be making a powerful statement that we support the environment and the city.”
The restaurant’s goal,according to Rosen,is to be recognized at next year’s Sustainable Quality Awards, an event sponsored by City Hall and the Chamber of Commerce that spotlights businesses perceived to be stewards of the environment.
“We want to be on the stage,” Rosen said. “We will be on that stage.”
Known initially as the Community Energy Independent Initiative, Solar Santa Monica is a two-year, pilot program designed by the Environmental Programs Division at City Hall to link residents and business owners with trusted suppliers of solar technology that could be purchased at a discount because customers would be buying in bulk.
The suppliers, hand-picked by city staff, offer packages for everyone from apartment dwellers to homeowners, mom-and-pops to larger corporations. Each package is intended to maximize power-saving technology to offer buyers a quick return on their investments.
The goal is for Santa Monica to become energy independent by the year 2020, and actually become a producer of clean energy that can be sold on the open market.
Susan Munves, energy and green building programs administrator for City Hall, said she hopes to use The Lobster as a means of reaching out to other businesses considering going solar. Because of its high-profile location adjacent to the Santa Monica Pier sign, Munves also feels the eatery can serve as a symbol of Santa Monica’s commitment to the environment.
“We are very excited about this particular project because it is our first, really visible commercial project, and we hope thousands of people will take note of the roof and see that it’s solar (panels) they are looking at,” Munves said.“We really want to use The Lobster’s installation to reach out to people who go to the pier.”
The Lobster’s general manager, Jack DeNicola, is in the process of finalizing plans with SunTechnics.
While it is cheaper than ever to install solar technology, with rebates and tax incentives, it can still be expensive, anywhere from $20,000 for a modest system to more than $100,000 for some of the larger ones. Those who decide to invest often have to wait years before seeing a return.
Well aware of the costs, Rosen said The Lobster decided to move ahead with the conversion more for the environmental benefits than saving a few bucks on the electric bill.
“There are just too many other reasons to do it than money,” she said. “We want to be good partners with the community and be good role models. We want to speak out for what’s right.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 13, 2007. Read the original PDF.