Committee weighs Focus on Energy $1,000, Dane County compost grant and library partnership for public education
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Summary
The committee discussed using a $1,000 Focus on Energy award for an educational or visible energy-efficiency project (library LED conversions or public events), explored a Dane County compost grant (deadline Feb. 1) to fund feasibility consulting for expanding yard-waste to food-scrap composting, and agreed that a volunteer will draft a grant application to be submitted by staff if approved.
The Village of Cross Plains Sustainability Committee examined how to spend a remaining $1,000 Focus on Energy award and whether to pursue a Dane County compost grant with a tight Feb. 1 deadline.
Members said the Focus on Energy dollars are too small to fund major infrastructure but could help support a visible, educational project or partially offset an LED conversion at the library. "The thousand dollars is still floating around," one member said; others suggested pairing funding with a library educational series so the money both supports an efficiency upgrade and increases public awareness.
On composting, committee members reviewed the Dane County grant guidelines and noted the program favors start-up projects, vendor services for food-scrap collection, on-site collection systems and consulting support. Because the village already operates a yard-waste site, members concluded the grant would likely be appropriate only to expand services to accept food scraps or to pay for a consultant to scope such an expansion.
One committee member volunteered to draft application language in the next few days and move the draft to staff (Carly) for submission if the committee wants to proceed. "I will volunteer to put some draft language together in an application and then move it on to Carly," the member said. The committee agreed the draft could request funds to hire a consultant to assess feasibility and cost, and that the consultant’s scope should be constrained by the $1,000 grant expectation.
Separately, members discussed dark-sky lighting and a pro-bono expert who provided examples showing how higher color-temperature LEDs increase sky glow. They proposed a community night-sky event—timed to a lunar eclipse or other astronomical event—partnering with the library and using the event to explain how lighting affects visibility and local wildlife.
No binding grant awards were made at the meeting. The committee agreed to move forward with a volunteer draft for the Dane County application and to contact the library about potential partnerships and modest energy-efficiency projects for public education.