August 12, 2010
The Shining
This morning I heard from Wendy Blackwell of the city Land Use Department, who immediately dispatched an inspector to investigate the mysterious glare from the Davis Mansion. (She apologized for not receiving my earlier emails, which apparently became stuck in City Hall’s spam filter.) The source of the light, she has confirmed, is indeed a row of solar panels.
Regarding the nuisance caused by the reflection, Ms. Blackwell said that her hands are tied. Though city code requires that in the Escarpment District “exterior glazing be nonmirrored with a reflectance of less than 40 percent,” state law exempts solar collectors. (How much energy is being collected when so much sunlight is being cast back would make for an interesting engineering problem.)
Ms. Blackwell did offer some promising news:
You will be pleased to know that the owners are interested in
doing some type of screening even though it is not required by
code. Our staff will be making suggestions as to how screening
can be accomplished without interfering with the solar
collection. Netting or low shrubs are possible solutions.
Meanwhile we can rest assured that the largest, most extravagant residence in Santa Fe is generating green electrons.
George Johnson
The Santa Fe Review
Regarding the nuisance caused by the reflection, Ms. Blackwell said that her hands are tied. Though city code requires that in the Escarpment District “exterior glazing be nonmirrored with a reflectance of less than 40 percent,” state law exempts solar collectors. (How much energy is being collected when so much sunlight is being cast back would make for an interesting engineering problem.)
Ms. Blackwell did offer some promising news:
You will be pleased to know that the owners are interested in doing some type of screening even though it is not required by code. Our staff will be making suggestions as to how screening can be accomplished without interfering with the solar collection. Netting or low shrubs are possible solutions.
Meanwhile we can rest assured that the largest, most extravagant residence in Santa Fe is generating green electrons.
George Johnson
The Santa Fe Review