Courtesy: The Merc Co-op

Soon the power of solar energy will be on vivid display in Lawrence. And, no, I’m not talking about what will happen when I learn the hard way that leftover 3-D glasses from “The Emoji Movie” don’t work to view the eclipse. Instead, I’m talking about a large project that will turn one of Lawrence’s grocery stores into a major solar energy producer.

The Merc Co-op has plans to add several hundred thousand dollars’ worth of solar panels to its building at Ninth and Iowa streets. The grocery store has been talking about the project since this spring, but recently filed for the necessary permits at City Hall to make the project a reality.

The store, which is a true cooperative in that it is owned by its member customers, plans to install so many solar panels that it will generate about 30 percent of all its power needs from the sun.

“We talk about the impact we want to have in the community, and one of them is we want to care for the environment,” said Rita York Hennecke, general manager for The Merc Co-op.

But grocery stores are notorious for using a lot of energy, in part because of all the refrigeration equipment and the large footprints of their buildings. That means The Merc will have to install a lot of solar panels to meet their goal.

Plans call for much of the roof of the building to be covered with solar panels, and a solar panel-covered pergola will be built above the outdoor seating area of the store’s cafe. But perhaps the most noticeable part of the project will be two large carports that will be built in the store’s parking lot. They too will be covered with solar panels. The carports will cover 32 parking spaces in the store’s main parking lot. The canopy will incorporate a charging station for an electric car also.

Courtesy: The Merc Co-op

Renderings of a project that will add nearly 700 solar panels to The Merc location at Ninth and Iowa streets. Courtesy: The Merc Co-op

In total, the project will have just fewer than 700 solar panels, and it is being billed as the largest solar project to ever be built in Lawrence. Lawrence-based Cromwell Solar is designing and installing the project. Owner Aron Cromwell is a member of The Merc Co-op, and has been talking with the business for years about the project. He particularly convinced the store to add the carports to the project because they would create a unique visual.

“He’s very knowledgeable about our operations,” Hennecke said. “He really convinced us it would be a great statement for The Merc.”

Plans call for the installation of the solar panels on the building’s roof to begin in September. Installation of the solar panels in the parking lot likely won’t begin until October, depending on City Hall approval.

York said the grocery store is using a leasing program through Cromwell Solar and Mid-America Bank to make the project financially feasible. The program uses the money saved in energy bills to pay for the financing of the project.