When 90-year-old Ray Dones climbs to a rooftop above the new Thomas Berkeley Square in downtown Oakland, he sees evidence of his collaborative projects across the skyline. To the west rise the MORH Housing Apartments; to the south, the Elihu M. Harris State Office Building. The satisfaction of jobs well done, life well lived, and family well raised would be enough for most people, but Ray has a vision to do more. A man with great successes in general and electrical construction, magazine publishing, and audio and automotive engineering, he’s on a mission to harness solar power.

As Co-Founder of and Energy Consultant to SUDA (Strategic Urban Development Alliance) and with his son Alan Dones, SUDA CEO and Managing Partner, and John Guillory, SUDA Co-Founder and Partner, Ray is a force behind the largest solar panel installation in downtown Oakland—a roof-full on the Alameda County Social Service Headquarters at Thomas L. Berkeley Square, a project developed by SUDA at San Pablo and Thomas Berkeley Way (formerly 20th Street). OneCal Bank financed the panels and their installation.
       
Alan shares his father’s passion for adaptive reuse and renewable energy. In addition to overseeing SUDA’s projects, Alan travels to Africa to work on the early stages of a five-country project which includes solar and hydroelectric power. Many of Alan’s other interests align with his father’s. Alan is an accomplished musician and community advocate for equal opportunity in employment and contracting; Ray holds patents in audio and auto acoustics and was a founding member of the National Association of Minority Contractors. Both men have been active in local and national organizations creating positive change and opportunity for others.
       
Adding renewable energy to their footprint of new construction and historic preservation in the East Bay, the Dones are an energetic example of what vision, commitment and a lot of hard work can build.       

The Dones are featured in OneCalifornia Community Development Banking Report 2008 Q2. PDF

Photo:
Alan and Ray Dones on the roof of the Alameda County Social Service Headquarters, the largest solar panel installation in downtown Oakland.