ICHS Shoreline Medical and Dental Clinic harnesses the sun's power with new panels

The new solar array on the ICHS roof

International Community Health Services (ICHS) Shoreline Medical and Dental Clinic is pursuing certification as a LEED Gold "green building" with 36 photovoltaic solar panels recently installed on the building's roof. 

The solar panels will allow the facility to harness the power of the sun to generate electricity, and could lead to a reduction of the facility's energy costs, ICHS officials said. Installation of the panels was completed on Feb. 27.

Hoisting the panels to the roof

Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold buildings must meet high benchmarks demonstrating that their design, construction, and features benefit the environment.

The Shoreline Medical and Dental Clinic also supports the City of Shoreline's Forevergreen initiative, which promotes environmental sustainability in different areas, including construction of "green buildings" within the city.  

"We're very proud to be part of the City of Shoreline's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint through energy efficiency and promotion of renewable energy," ICHS CEO Teresita Batayola said. "When the Shoreline Medical and Dental Clinic was still in the design phase, we made a conscious decision to be an energy-efficient facility and be an active contributor to Shoreline's Forevergreen initiative."

The 37,000-square-foot Shoreline Medical and Dental Clinic, located at 16549 Aurora Avenue North on a one-acre property, opened last September as the first non-profit community health center in Shoreline. It has 20 medical exam rooms, 10 dental chairs, and 47 parking spaces for patients. 

Workers installing the panels on the roof

The medical-dental facility earlier was honored with the 2014 Excellence in Masonry - Medical Merit Award from the Masonry Institute of Washington, for the building's use of durable, sustainable, and natural construction materials.

Founded in 1973, ICHS is a non-profit community health center offering affordable primary medical and dental care, acupuncture, laboratory, pharmacy, behavioral health WIC, and health education services. ICHS’ four full-service medical and dental clinics -- located in Seattle's International District and Holly Park neighborhoods; and in the cities of Bellevue and Shoreline -- serve over 20,000 patients each year.

As the only community health center in Washington primarily serving Asians and Pacific Islanders, ICHS provides care in over 50 languages and dialects annually. ICHS is committed to improving the health of medically-underserved communities by providing affordable and in-language health care. 

Updated 03-10-2015 10:42am