Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Facilities Energy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
District 99 secures state funding for solar, stadium lighting and EV chargers; projects reported to offset $1.4M in costs
Summary
Superintendent Hank Thiele reported that grant and rebate work by facilities staff would offset the approximately $1.4 million cost of next‑year energy projects, including solar panels, stadium LED lighting and electric vehicle chargers for instructional vehicles; chargers will be restricted to district vehicles.
Superintendent Hank Thiele reported that district facilities staff had assembled a package of projects and funding that would cover the cost of multiple energy and sustainability upgrades next year, including rooftop solar, LED stadium lighting and electric vehicle chargers for instructional vehicles.
Thiele told the board that total project costs were roughly $1.4 million but that grant awards, ComEd rebates and state appropriations secured through local legislators would zero out the district’s net cost. He credited staff and legislators by name: Representative Ann Stava-Murray had secured $500,000 toward solar projects, and Senator Rachel Ventura submitted funding for stadium lighting and vehicle charger work.
“Travis not only is paying for these projects but has created projects that also pay us back,” Thiele said, noting projected incentives and operating savings that would appear in five‑year projections. The superintendent added the district could be eligible for additional federal incentives, depending on pending federal policy.
Board members asked a technical question about the chargers. The administration said the chargers the district expects to install can be limited for use by specified vehicles and that the planned stations would be reserved for the district’s instructional electric vehicles; the chargers are not being set up for general public or staff vehicle use.
Thiele said the energy package would be brought back to the board for formal approval at a future meeting, and that projected rebates and avoided energy costs were part of the district’s financial calculations.
