MENDOTA – Mendota School District 289 Superintendent Brad Cox has alternative energy projects in his background.
So when he heard about an opportunity to supply Lincoln Elementary, Blackstone Elementary, and Northbrook School with solar panels, he brought it to the school board’s attention and it quickly hopped on the idea.
“We work with a performance contracting group, GRP Wegman. They have helped us coordinate and implement all of our summer work over the last several years,” Cox said. “They’ve been a great partner. They’ve even helped us lay out a five-year action plan of what our priority listing would be.
“When we were talking 1 ½ years ago, the winter before last, about what the summer 2023 projects were going to look like, that was when we put in secured entrances, and we talked about roof work. As a school district, you always want to make sure you don’t want any leaks. You tend to put those issues on sort of a 20-25-year rotation.
“Our lead contact at GRP, Scott Engstrom, said right now there are amazing incentives and rebates on schools doing solar projects. With previous experience, I know one of the most important things is to make sure you’re not doing it just for green energy’s sake. Yes, that’s wonderful, but as a school district, you have to make sure it makes sense from a financial standpoint.”
There are many aspects to consider – taxpayer money, money being spent on a project that could be put toward school’s No. 1 priority of educating students, environment issues, time, resources, and the list could go on.
Once Cox, the school board, and Engstrom did the math, it seemed the solar panel project would be a win-win-win-win situation for most conversational debates.
“In rough numbers, the project was going to cost $2.1 million. We were going to get $1.9 million in grants, incentives, and rebates,” Cox said. “We were able to put solar panels on the roofs of all three buildings. In the course of that, we would be able to cover 75 percent of all of our electrical need. We’re going to net, a very conservative estimate would be, we’re going to save $40,000 a year.
“If it’s a $2.1 million project, we get $1.9 million in grants, that means our out-of-pocket expense is only $200,000. It was a little shy, I think $190,000 and some change. Then saving a minimum of $40,000 is going to pay for itself in five years.
“Solar equipment lasts decades. After the first five years the project has paid for itself and the panels last another 20 years, you’re saving $800,000 over the lifetime of the project.
“It makes sense from a financial standpoint, environmental standpoint, and an educational standpoint because the students are learning about what the panels do.”
Because of the post-COVID-19 supply issues the project was delayed a few months as it was supposed to be completed and online in August or September 2023.
Installation was completed in May 2024 and ComEd is in the process of connecting the panels to its grid in early July.
The three schools will be linked one at a time over a few weeks.
Once it is online and active, there will be a ribbon cutting to make the solar panel project official.
“It’s not just me spearheading the project. Our school board is very much involved in the decision-making. It’s something the entire board is very passionate about,” Cox said. “Once we started talking about all of the gains educationally, environmentally, and financially, it’s a project that was easy to get excited about.”
