Fairfax Co. Begins Work On Energy Upgrades At Spring Hill Rec Center

MCLEAN, VA — Fairfax County officials held a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the start of several improvements at the Spring Hill Rec Center in McLean designed to reduce the facility’s energy consumption.

Improvements to the Spring Hill Rec Center will include the replacement of pool dehumidification units, the installation of solar photovoltaic arrays, a geothermal HVAC system, LED lighting upgrades and improvements to building automation systems.

The upgrade project at the rec center, located at 1239 Spring Hill Road in McLean, is expected to take about a year.

The project is expected to reduce annual electric power consumption by 19 percent and natural gas consumption by 29 percent, producing up to $67,000 in savings in the first year. The upgrades are part of Fairfax County's goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2040.

The new solar array at the Spring Hill Rec Center will be the largest in the Fairfax County Park Authority system, according to Jai Cole, executive director of the FCPA.

The July 26 groundbreaking event included Cole, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay, Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust and representatives from Fairfax County's Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination.

"We have a lot of agencies in the county. There is no way that the county will be able to meet its goal of carbon neutrality in our operations in 2040 unless every agency in Fairfax County is doing their part," McKay said at the ceremony.

John Morrill, acting director of Fairfax County's Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination, said the Spring Hill Rec Center project is one of many energy efficiency upgrade projects in the works in the county.

CMTA Inc., the engineering contractor that Fairfax County is partnering with on the Spring Hill Rec Center project, has worked on 20 other projects in the county, all featuring energy efficiency or renewable energy, Morrill said.

Among the other projects involving CMTA are energy efficiency upgrades already completed at Cub Run Rec Center, South Run Rec Center and the City of Fairfax Regional Library.