
The Greene County School Board met in special session Monday afternoon.
The meeting started with a public hearing on the plans and specifications, form of contract, and cost estimate that was more detailed for the district-wide solar panel project. Four people spoke and those individuals were Cindy Wise, Jason Everist, Lindsey Carson and Kirk Citurs. A question was asked about the Reconciliation Bill that was passed by the US House and the tax credits that are associated with solar panel projects. Superintendent Brett Abbotts said he has a conversation with Senator Chuck Grassley about that.
However, Abbotts noted that it is illegal for them to do a solar panel project specifically for the tax credits. He said the Board had previously approved up to $5.1 million of Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) funds for the project and are not relying on federal tax credits for the project. He did indicate that they will apply for them after the project is completed, but as a “want” not a “need.”
A representative with Modus Engineering answered a question about the decrease in performance from the solar panels over a period of time. He said the panels have an average loss of energy output between 0.5 and one percent over 20 years. Another question was brought up about only using a battery source to reduce the peak energy times that the district currently is paying as its rate. It was mentioned that the solar panels would be used as a source for the battery solution, but not using it as a sole solution, and there was no payback with only having a battery source without having the panels too.
After the public hearing was closed, the Board then approved a resolution for the plans and specifications, form of contract and cost estimate for the project. Then, they awarded the base bid with two alternates, which included having a battery source for the high school and elementary school, for a total of $4,089,718 with $200,000 for the two alternates. The total maximum amount that was also approved was $4.5 million.