Hope has partnered with the City of Holland’s Board of Public Works to provide a Solar Power-Dok picnic table for student, community and visitor use on the Ninth Street side of the college’s property at 84 E. Eighth St.
The Solar-Dok, which was installed on Wednesday, April 30, features four 110 vac 60 hz GFCI outlets and two USB Type “A” power outlets. Equipped with storage batteries and overhead LED lights, the Solar-Dok will be useable even on cloudy days and after dark.
Solar-Doks, which are manufactured by EnerFusion of Lansing, have been installed at locations around the country, primarily on college and university campuses. The Hope-BPW partnership makes Holland only the second site in Michigan; the other is a park in Bay City.
In addition to providing a green source of power, the Solar-Dok itself features multiple components made completely or partially of recycled material, including the seat supports, seats and aluminum tower.
The BPW is sponsoring the initiative through the pilot technology category of its Energy Optimization Program. Hope is hosting the Solar-Dok and will provide on-going maintenance.