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EAST GRAND FORKS — The East Grand Forks School District recently was awarded a $500,000 Solar for Schools state grant for the installation of solar panels near Central Middle School.
The district is on the “last steps” on finalizing the $1.2 million project, Superintendent Kevin Grover said, and will cost the district itself approximately $200,000. Grover said the district is working with the city, county and state to get the “final thumbs-up” but hopes to break ground this summer.
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“We don’t have extra money. And so if we can do some things that over the long haul are beneficial financially for the district, then that’s good for the community,” he said. “More (funds) can go into the education part of it, compared to our facilities.”
The total cost of the project is projected at $1,166,649. The Solar for Schools state grant will pay $500,000, federal investment tax credits will cover around $350,000, domestic materials incentive tax credits will pay another $117,000, and the remaining $200,000 will come from the district’s general fund reserves.
“From my standpoint, it’s looking at ‘How can we best use taxpayer money?’ This is just one of those ways that it’s a fairly short return,” Grover said. “From a district standpoint, it’s a good investment. … It’s really incentivized through the government and through different programs.”
Ten companies responded to the district’s request for proposal. Ziegler Energy Solutions won the bid.
The solar panels are expected to save the district $50,000 to $55,000 a year after three to four years of operation. A majority of these savings will come from the Minnesota Municipal Power Agency (MMPA) purchasing the energy back from the district.
“They’re the ones actually buying the power back from us. So they’ll buy everything that it produces … and then we still buy our power,” Grover said. “But it’ll save in the ballpark, according to Ziegler, on the low end $50,000 to $55,000. But they think it’ll be more than that.”
The solar panels also will be implemented into student curriculum, according to Grover.
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The panels will be placed on the ground outside Central Middle School. Grover said the school is in a great location for the project because it won’t disturb or reflect on nearby homes or businesses.
“We just built a good area, a good place to do this,” he said. “And the opportunity was right with the grants in place.”
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