Is it… lifting them 8’ off the ground that makes it impossibly expensive? Or maybe… the people in that area do not like shade?

How complicated are the electronics to ensure that the voltage dip from one panel with a table sized shadow doesn’t drag down the whole array?

That’s still how I’d do it, just make the plastic bit reach over those other resistors. I’d 3d print the bracket.

Design a plastic housing for the connector that puts pressure on short while the ribbon is plugged in. Put a short in the plastic housing.

Making some assumptions here but…