The Monroe County Board of Education on Jan. 9 approved nonbinding letters of intent to EESI and Skilled Services to pursue an energy‑conservation project that could be financed with a state loan of up to $5 million.

The action directs staff to provide the two firms with letters of intent so they can proceed with project planning and return to the board with more detailed proposals and agreements. Board members described the letters as nonbinding and preliminary; no loan agreement was executed at the meeting.

The board’s discussion focused on the project’s financing model and prior savings. Philip, a district staff member who briefed the board, said the district’s earlier energy work is producing about $197,000 in annual savings and that the proposed project would be financed with “up to a $5,000,000 loan from the state of Tennessee,” with “the savings…pay[ing] for the payment going back.” He described the current step as providing letters of intent so the vendors and the state can “begin to lay this out and bring it back to the board.”

Board members asked whether the proposal was a grant or a loan; a speaker clarified that the district is not being offered a grant. The board also confirmed the plan did not cover unrelated HVAC work in a gym; that work was presented as a separate estimate Philip could share later. A board member also noted the district previously used fund balance to pay roughly $1.7 million for earlier work.

The motion to approve the nonbinding letters of intent carried on a voice vote. No formal loan commitment or contract award was made at the meeting; any loan would require subsequent approvals and the final project contract.

The superintendent later reminded the board the district’s routine financial reporting and testing calendar remain on schedule while the district evaluates capital projects. Staff will return with detailed project proposals and financing terms for the board’s future consideration.