By John DiNapoli

When it comes to making your home more energy efficient, sometimes we can overthink it. Should you install a high-efficiency furnace or solar panels? While these items can save you energy, they are expensive and have a long payback period. We have found that the easiest and most cost-effective way to save energy is to caulk and add insulation.

Recently, we set up a home energy assessment visit with a Unitil customer in Lunenburg. An energy specialist assessed the home's energy use and made a custom list of energy-saving recommendations, which I have detailed below because they are applicable to so many homes.

Insulation

* Box in recessed lights in the attic to prevent blown insulation from coming in contact with the lights. Install a thermadome over the attic staircase.

* Box in heating system in the attic. As a sealed combustion system in the attic, it requires some heat in order to prevent the condensation pump from freezing. This should be done using 2-inch rigid foam board insulation.

* Remove insulation from sloped ceiling in the attic. Having the sloped ceiling insulated increases the heated space to include that of the attic. A more effective barrier would be the attic floor.

* Add 1,289 square feet of R-50 cellulose insulation to the attic floor. Adding insulation will result in an improved thermal boundary, which will minimize the transfer of heat to the outdoors.

* Garage ceiling below apartment

should be dense-packed with cellulose. While there is insulation in the ceiling, there is also air movement, which should be eliminated.

Air tightening

* Reduce air infiltration by 23 percent. Minimizing the changes of air will reduce heating and cooling losses due to convection. Areas of concentration should be attic deck, attic access, doors between conditioned and unconditioned spaces, basement rim joist, as well as any mechanical and electrical penetrations in the home.

Like this Lunenburg customer, most homeowners need to beef up the amount of insulation in their homes. The above changes, many of which are do-it-yourself projects, would reduce this homeowner's annual energy usage by $300 per year.

John DiNapoli is community and municipal manager for Unitil.

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Save energy with caulking, insulation

THE COMFORT of jail inmates is not likely to top the concerns of most people, but popular or not, housing people in humane conditions is not only moral, it's the law.

If Passaic County officials were unaware of that in the past, they should be uncertain no more. The county just settled a federal suit that requires it to institute a series of sensible reforms at its aging and crowded jail in Paterson. The litigation, which was led by the American Civil Liberties Union and Seton Hall University's Center for Social Justice, was filed four years ago on behalf of eight inmates who complained about such things as rodent droppings in their food and beatings by officers when out of sight of security cameras.

The proposed settlement, which will be reviewed by a judge next month, obligates the county to install new fire alarm and ventilation systems, provide more space between toilets and beds, increase the medical staff and work to ease overcrowding. Some of the requirements already have been met. For example, jail population this week was 1,048, down from a high of about 1,700 five years ago. Sprinkler systems are being installed and an upgraded air conditioning and heating system is being constructed. The work has cost $8 million so far and is expected to cost $5 million more.

That's an expensive investment, but once all the requirements are implemented, the jail will be a better place for both inmates and corrections officers. Keeping a jail as hospitable as possible helps avoid unrest. Settling litigation that has hung over the jail for four years closes a chapter for government officials in Passaic County.

But let's keep the book open.

There was a fledgling plan last summer to shut the jail and to house Passaic County inmates in newer and larger lockups in Bergen and possibly Essex counties. The deal could have saved Passaic County as much as $20 million in addition to providing Paterson with a chance to redevelop the jail site as a tax-producing project.

After some initial encouragement, the Passaic freeholders killed the idea in the face of opposition from jail employees and their union representatives. So quick was the about-face that the freeholders wouldn't even agree to formally study the proposal, a stance that rightly disappointed officials in Bergen and Essex. That impulsive and far too hasty decision was hardly government at its best.

Notwithstanding the financial commitment the county is now making to upgrade the Passaic jail, we remain convinced that it's prudent for officials to thoroughly investigate a shared arrangement with neighboring Bergen County.

Even with new smoke detectors and a modern heating and cooling system, the Passaic County Jail is about 60 years old and overcrowding can be a recurring problem.

Settling the suit bides Passaic County some time, time the freeholders should use to seriously explore how much money can be saved by housing county inmates in a neighboring county.

We understand this is a complicated issue with many moving parts. It is worthy of study.

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Herald News: Time to revisit jail consolidation

THE COMFORT of jail inmates is not likely to top the concerns of most people, but popular or not, housing people in humane conditions is not only moral, it's the law.

Passaic County Jail.

If Passaic County officials were unaware of that in the past, they should be uncertain no more. The county just settled a federal suit that requires it to institute a series of sensible reforms at its aging and crowded jail in Paterson. The litigation, which was led by the American Civil Liberties Union and Seton Hall University's Center for Social Justice, was filed four years ago on behalf of eight inmates who complained about such things as rodent droppings in their food and beatings by officers when out of sight of security cameras.

The proposed settlement, which will be reviewed by a judge next month, obligates the county to install new fire alarm and ventilation systems, provide more space between toilets and beds, increase the medical staff and work to ease overcrowding. Some of the requirements already have been met. For example, jail population this week was 1,048, down from a high of about 1,700 five years ago. Sprinkler systems are being installed, and an upgraded air conditioning and heating system is being constructed. The work has cost $8 million so far and is expected to cost $5 million more.

That's an expensive investment, but once all the requirements are implemented, the jail will be a better place for both inmates and corrections officers. Keeping a jail as hospitable as possible helps avoid unrest. Settling litigation that has hung over the jail for four years closes a chapter for government officials in Passaic County.

But let's keep the book open.

There was a fledgling plan last summer to shut the jail and to house Passaic County inmates in newer and larger lockups in Bergen and possibly Essex counties. The deal could have saved Passaic County as much as $20 million in addition to providing Paterson with a chance to redevelop the jail site as a tax-producing project.

After some initial encouragement, the Passaic freeholders killed the idea in the face of opposition from jail employees and their union representatives. So quick was the about-face that the freeholders wouldn't even agree to formally study the proposal, a stance that rightly disappointed officials in Bergen and Essex. That impulsive and far-too-hasty decision was hardly government at its best.

Notwithstanding the financial commitment the county is now making to upgrade the Passaic jail, we remain convinced that it's prudent for officials to thoroughly investigate a shared arrangement with neighboring Bergen County. Even with new smoke detectors and a modern heating and cooling system, the Passaic County Jail is about 60 years old, and overcrowding can be a recurring problem.

Settling the suit buys Passaic County some time – time the freeholders should use to seriously explore how much money can be saved by housing county inmates in a neighboring county. We understand this is a complicated issue with many moving parts. It is worthy of study.

Continue reading here:
The Record: Jail reprieve

February 23, 2012 Updated Feb 23, 2012 at 6:31 PM EST

MARKLE, Ind. (Indiana's NewsCenter) - Who doesn't want to save a few bucks these days? Heating and cooling your home can be very expensive, but there are a few things people can do to cut down on energy costs.

Energizing Indiana is an organization formed through the collaborative efforts of the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission, various consumer groups, and several utility companies.

Today one of their crews toured a Markle home. The inspectors looked at the heating, air conditioning, ventilation, appliances, insulation, light bulbs, and much more. The home owners were given suggestions along the way and offered a full report at the end.

Home assessments are offered free of charge. In addition, Energizing Indiana will install new, low-flow sink and shower heads at no additional cost. Incandescent light bulbs are also replaced with florescent light bulbs.

After identifying what can be done to improve the energy efficiency of a home, Energizing Indiana will often work with the home owner to find affordable improvement options.

"You're putting that investment into your home," says Energizing Indiana Director Bob Nuss. "It's something that is going to continue to provide savings long after it's paid back. Most of the measures that you're going to see here are going to be paid back in a year to three years. After that, it's money in your pocket."

Making some energy upgrades can also improve a home's air quality and elevate its value.

To find out more about Energizing Indiana's residential, industrial, and school programs, visit http://energizingindiana.com/programs/

What are your thoughts CLICK HERE to leave us a "Your2Cents” comment.

© Copyright 2012 A Granite Broadcasting Station. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Originally posted here:
Invest a Little, Save a Lot

SAN ANGELO, Texas — Trustees of San Angelo ISD got some good financial news and some "sticker shock" news at the Board of Education's monthly meeting Monday.

The good news came in the form of a check for $29,541, a rebate from AEP's SCORE program, Schools Conserving Resources.

Gary Throckmorton, program coordinator of AEP's Texas energy efficiency programs, said the school district has been participating in SCORE for five years.

"While these incentives are impressive, the district's biggest benefit comes from reducing your energy use by nearly half a million kilowatt hours a year," Throckmorton said, a savings equivalent to the annual energy use of 64 average homes.

The incentive is a result of switching to energy efficient lighting and HVAC equipment at Alta Loma, Goliad, Holiman and San Jacinto elementary schools, Lee Middle School and Central High School.

Much of the work has come during the renovations linked to the $117 million bond approved by voters in 2008, but Jim Elson, district director of maintenance, said it also was thanks to the district's ongoing revitalization program, which allows the district to update lighting and heating and cooling systems at campuses not included in the bond projects.

Throckmorton said the city of San Angelo also received a rebate of $17,876 from AEP for adopting energy efficiencies.

The "sticker shock" came Thursday when the district received a bid of $1.17 million to install air conditioning and upgrade heating in two gymnasiums, the dressing rooms and a weightroom at Central Freshman Campus and two gyms at Glenn Middle School.

The last time the district installed air conditioning in a gym was at Lake View High School, and the cost was about $200,000, said Steve Van Hoozer, the district's director of bond planning and construction.

The CFC and Glenn gym projects are not part of the bond and are the last four gyms at secondary schools without air conditioning.

Superintendent Carol Ann Bonds and Van Hoozer said age the facilities at CFC, built in the 1920s, were part of the reason for the unexpectedly high cost.

"That old gym has little to no insulation; it's basically a wooden box with a lid on it," Van Hoozer said of one of the CFC gyms. "There are just some real difficulties on getting air conditioning to these old gyms. Also, the price of things are just creeping up."

Trustee Cookie Roberts said the girls who play volleyball and other sports at Central Freshman and Glenn need air conditioning.

"We've taken care of everyone else," she said. "For the health and welfare of those girls, we need to air-condition these gyms."

The board voted to approve the base bid of $1.17 million and asked Van Hoozer to find out what it would cost to replace windows and to report back in March.

Van Hoozer also reminded the board and the administration that after March 1 there will be no air conditioning in the SAISD Administration Building until the work is complete on upgrading its HVAC system.

Bonds also asked the board to approve the members of the first concussion oversight team. She said a law passed in the last legislative session requires school districts to name a team "to establish protocols when a child who has been diagnosed with a concussion may return to competition or even practice."

The team approved by the board is made up of Bonds, district Athletic Director Jim Slaughter, district athletic trainers Jenny Corbett, Joey Guzman, Randall Parker and Troy Wilde, orthopedic Dr. Stacy Beaty, family practice Dr. Warren Conway, pediatrics Dr. James Herbert and pediatrics Dr. Robert Patyrak.

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SAISD board of trustees gets good news and bad at meeting

19-07-2011 15:33 Installation of an Air Conditioning System ductless minisplit ductless mini split . A Ductless Mini-Split Heat Pump can heat and cool your home with solid energy efficiency. A mini-split is ideal when you have limited space in which to work or the location to be cooled and heated lacks sufficient ductwork. And with a heat pump, you can achieve solid energy efficiencies that will save money. A basic mini-split is rated at least a 13 Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating and some models can reach even higher SEERs. These units provide effective air comfort where you need them to while maintaining low energy consumption. A Ductless Mini-Split Heat Pump is not the most difficult HVAC system to install, but it is not something to take lightly. Proper installation is key for achieving the best energy efficiencies the unit can produce. By design, installation of the interior unit of a mini-split is relatively simplified. The most difficult electrical work is already done and housed safely within the system. What is required is properly mounting the unit itself on a wall and then running the various connections to the outdoor unit. Start by removing the wall mount from the back of the mini-split interior unit. Then, pick out a spot on a wall surface where you want the unit to be secured. After you have decided, use a level to mark out drill points and secure the wall mount according to instructions. You will have to drill holes that are level with one another. Through this process ...

Originally posted here:
Installation of an Air Conditioning System ductless minisplit ductless mini split - Video

Renewable energy systems specialist, ecofission, has welcomed a new government initiative in the continuing fight to reduce carbon footprint and energy costs. The company say that the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme will increase the uptake of ground source heating technology. This in turn can reduce a business’ carbon footprint by 45% and its heating and cooling costs by up to 55%. To encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to join the scheme, ecofission is offering a discount on its systems.

London, UK (PRWEB UK) 20 February 2012

The RHI scheme represents a £860 million commitment from the government. It is designed to encourage the use of greener technology, such as ground source heating, over the next two decades. The carbon targets set for UK emissions over the coming century are ambitious but ground source heating has a major role to play in achieving them.

ecofission’s Project Director, Alan Toms, explains: “A ground source heating or cooling system works by harnessing energy within the ground. It turns this into usable energy that significantly reduces the carbon footprint of buildings as well as their running costs. The arrival of RHI not only demonstrates a commitment from the government to improve our environment but it also shows a commitment to growing the green economy, which in turn will bring new employment opportunities.”

The installation of one of these systems can now guarantee a quarterly return on a company’s investment, depending on the size of the system. The RHI has no limit in the ‘over 100KW’ category, so an organisation can install a system as large as possible to maximise the return on investment. As the scheme runs for 20 years, there is a real incentive to make the switch as soon as possible. For instance, systems below 100kw will pay 4.3 per kwh; whilst those above 100kw will pay 3p per kwh.

Although the RHI is currently limited to commercial properties, the government has said it will introduce the scheme for domestic users in October 2012. It has undertaken to backdate it for all projects installed since 2009. To prevent the market from stalling prior to October, it has created a one-off payment scheme.

ecofission’s Operations Director, Martin Simons, remarks: “We believe that this move by the government will take renewable products even closer to parity with the traditional methods of heating and cooling. We have therefore decided to further encourage SMEs to cut their carbon footprint by offering 15% discount on any systems that are ordered and installed before May 2012.”

Notes for editors:

ecofission is based in Chelmsford, Essex, and specialises in the design and installation of renewable energy systems. It offers a turnkey service from concept through to completion, covering ground source heating and cooling systems; solar thermal collectors; solar PV; and air source heating and cooling systems. Further information can be obtained from the company’s website (http://www.ecofission.eu) or by calling 0844 870 8694.

###

Martin Simons
ecofission
0844 870 8694
Email Information

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Ecofission encourages companies to go green by joining the government's RHI scheme

One of the hottest startups in Silicon Valley is not what you'd expect. It doesn't make iPhone apps or a new kind of database technology.

It's called Nest and it makes thermostats.

Cofounders Matt Rogers and Tony Fadell used to work at Apple on the iPod.

A couple of years ago, they came up with the idea that the thermostat on your wall is too hard to use, and doesn't provide enough easy ways to save money on energy. So they spent two years building and designing a new breed of thermostat—beautiful to look at, and easy to control from your mobile phone.

Best of all, Nest learns your energy usage habits and adjusts so you aren't blowing hot air throughout the house when nobody is home.

Nest launched last fall, and sales have been way higher than expected—the company has been continually selling out of all stock—and Nest has attracted fans like Google's Marissa Mayer.

It has also attracted the attention of the big guys. Last week, giant Honeywell sued Nest for patent infringement.

We caught up with cofounder Matt Rogers a couple days ago. He couldn't talk about the Honeywell suit for legal reasons, but here's what we learned:

Peers scoffed at the idea, but investors got it right away. "When we first did our first pitch, Randy Komisar at KP said 'we have been looking for a company to do this forever. and I am so glad you're here.'" It's not just for homeowners—renters are installing Nest, too. "It is not like you are getting a meter installed or a big piece of infrastructure. You take the one off the wall you have today, you plug a few wires into Nest, and you are good to go. Most customers are really very much able to do it themselves." They have no plans to work with utilities—they want customers to WANT this thing. "One of the things that are very core to us is being a trusted ally of the consumer and building a product that they want to invite into their homes." It's not intended to be a "green tech" product. "I don't really think it is a green tech revolution kind of product. We are building a great product for everybody, not just greenies. Everyone likes to save energy and money in their home." Working at Apple helped prepare them for Nest. "At Apple we would go to the moon and back for saving one millimeter off of the thinness on a device, and that kind of stuff definitely prepared us for Nest ... Everyone says they want to build beautiful products and products like Apple but very few are willing to put that time and energy, that focus in to do it." But there's no backup at a startup. "Apple is this gigantic company with a lot of resources and whenever we had something very difficult we always could invest our way out of it. We could put really fancy laser cutting equipment to make our metals and plastics or we could hire another engineer to help get the product to completion. In a startup you have it all, you have to do it. You can't just go hire and build a bigger team."

Business Insider: So you guys sold out on your first run. Did you expect that?

Matt Rogers: No we didn't actually. Once we launched it, announced it and started shipping, I think we struck a nerve with consumers and they saw the ugly thing on their wall today and the opportunity they had to get a better product and we have actually been, we have been continually selling out. So within three days we ... were taking reservations. And the last few months we have basically been filing off those reservation lists. It has been actually incredible, like how many people have been excited in buying the thermostat.

BI: What do you credit that to, is it design? And how did you get your message out across all the noise that's out there?

MR: So I mean, part of what gets people excited is design and usability and having a great interface that's easy. You shouldn't have to read a manual to figure out how to program your thermostat or use it. And in terms of how we got the word out, we did a lot of direct consumer conversations on social media. We did a lot of outreach in terms of PR. We talked to basically a lot of people and the more people we talked to the more the word got out. It was very much a grassroots type of campaign. We didn't do any advertising.

BI: How did you and Tony Fadell (the other cofounder) ever decide that thermostats were a ripe area for innovation?

MR: Tony and I, we met over lunch a long time ago, probably almost 2 1/2 years ago at this point, and were talking about what’s to come, what’s next. He had been building a very eco-friendly house in Tahoe and we were talking about some of the things going on there and the lack of innovation in the thermostat space. It got us really excited and we said hey, we built the iPod, what if we applied some of the great technology and design principles to the thermostat? And we spent a few months doing research and thinking about what that process would be and we went off and did it and we spent about 18 months with an amazing team building the product that we now have.

BI: Where do you even find people to work on that technology? This isn't your typical Silicon Valley startup.

MR: We hired folks from all around the Valley; from Apple, Microsoft, Google, from Twitter. People were excited to leave their jobs, basically their dream jobs, to work on this thermostat. It's a very impactful (sic) kind of product. Thermostats are responsible for about half of energy use so it is a huge amount of impact you could have.

BI: Was there a learning curve for these people?

MR: For those that are working on, I would say, the core thermostat part of the product, absolutely there was a learning curve and we spent quite a bit of time basically getting educated. We have an advisory board of heating and cooling experts from all around the country who basically educated us about this industry and about how the heating and cooling actually works.

But most of us don't work on the heating and cooling part of the product. We work on the mobile apps or the back-end servers or the algorithms or the UI [user interface] and that's the kind of techniques and technology that we used at Apple or at Google. It's just like building a phone.

BI: How big is the company?

MR: We're about 100.

BI: Wow. Not exactly a lean startup.

MR: It takes a lot to build this kind of product. To build just a great thermostat it was tough and then when you add in all of the things in the ecosystem, it is the whole company. We have to have manufacturing, we have a whole team that does apps, we have a web presence. It takes quite a bit.

BI: As you were planning the product and raising money, did you ever get any pushback from the investment community or your peers saying, "why are you making such an un-sexy product?"

MR: Different answers to your two questions. From friends or industry insiders, people that Tony and I know and trust, we did get the question, "A thermostat? Really?" But once we told them the story they got it.

Investors on the other hand totally got it. They had already been looking for companies to innovate in this area when we started and when we first did our first pitch, Randy Komisar at KP said "we have been looking for a company to do this forever. and I am so glad you're here."

BI: What do you guys do next? Are you planning on improving the core product and what kinds of areas do you look at to improve in?

MR: So there are a lot of areas where the product that we ship today could be a lot better ... Immediately we are looking next to "how do we better educate consumers about energy use and what things could we do there?" Today we are building a product that is a great tool to help consumers conserve energy. If you teach Nest well, you will save energy but how can we make that experience even better.

BI: Are you working at all with utilities?

MR: We have taken a different approach and we have decided to go basically on our own. One of the things that are very core to us is being a trusted ally of the consumer and building a product that they want to invite us into their homes. This is a product that they are going to hang on their wall and interact with every day so the path we have gone down is 100 percent consumer product.

BI: What do you do about renters? There is a sizable community, particularly in big cities, that don't own their home. Do they install Nest?

MR: We have actually seen quite a few renters buy Nest. They basically leave their thermostat on the wall and find that if they are compatible that they can buy it and install it there. It is a pretty low cost product that is helping them save energy, especially if they are a long-term renter and they are renting that house for years. I mean they will definitely see their savings.

BI: So it is not a real problem for them talking to the landlord.

MR: Exactly. It is not like you are getting a meter installed or a big piece of infrastructure. You take the one off the wall you have today, you plug a few wires into Nest, and you are good to go. Most customers are really very much able to do it themselves. The installations. We have online videos and all of those kinds of things.

BI: What about other products for the home? Or other energy-saving products?

MR: Today we are very much focused on the thermostat, improving that experience. Of course we are building a company and companies are more than about one product but today we are focused on the thermostat and doing that product really well.

BI: Do you see a resurgence in green tech and clean tech driven by consumers rather than the government and subsidies?

MR: I don't really think it is a green tech revolution kind of product. We are building a great product for everybody, not just greenies. Everyone likes to save energy and money in their home ... I don't know in terms of greater trends. I don't see too many other companies doing things like we are doing.

BI: You worked at Apple for almost 5 years. How did working at Apple prepare you to work at a startup? And specifically did it prepare you at all for working on this totally new kind of startup?

MR: Apple is a unique kind of place in that there is an exceptional amount of focus on the design and details. At Apple we would go to the moon and back for saving one millimeter off of the thinness on a device, and that kind of stuff definitely prepared us for Nest. Those kinds of design principles and diligence don't really exist anywhere else, and that core focus I think is what helped Tony and I basically design this thermostat. Everyone says they want to build beautiful products and products like Apple but very few are willing to put that time and energy, that focus in to do it.

BI: Do you see any other startups with the same kind of focus on design?

MR: The guys at Path have done an exceptional job in reinventing the user experience. I have been playing with that app recently and they really have built an amazingly easy to use beautiful UI and a great example of what a modern app can be.

BI: What about supply chain? That must be a big deal for you guys, and Tim Cook is heralded as a genius on that stuff.

MR: Absolutely, we have learned a ton from Apple in terms of operations, supply chain management and how to get a product built at high quality and at high volumes. That has been a continual focus for us and where we spend a lot of our time today is exactly on that.

BI: What did working at Apple not prepare you for? What were the surprises?

MR: Apple is this gigantic company with a lot of resources and whenever we had something very difficult we always could invest our way out of it. We could put really fancy laser cutting equipment to make our metals and plastics or we could hire another engineer to help get the product to completion. In a startup you have it all, you have to do it. You can't just go hire and build a bigger team. We have to be much more fiscally responsible. Also there is no backup, whereas at Apple you always could go call your buddies at the Mac team or in operations to help out a project. At a startup you’re on your own. You do your own backup.

BI: What is the weirdest thing you have had to do? Any emergencies?

MR: We have had to do anything and everything to the point. At one point I was even vacuuming the floor after we have had some stuff spill. When it comes down to it, everyone, the team here at Nest is willing to do anything it takes to get this product done and to build it.

More From Business Insider

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Nest Cofounder Explains How Working At Apple Helped Him Create The Perfect Thermostat

SHELBY COUNTY — Stewardson-Strasburg Schools got a $50,000 award for installing an alternative heating and cooling system into the building campus.

The Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives (AIEC) and Shelby Electric Cooperative presented the school the GeoAlliance Grant Wednesday morning. Attending the event were Regional Superintendent Dr. Bobbi Mattingly, school board representatives, and the design architect for the project.

The grant program is a collaboration between the AIEC in Springfield and Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation in Chicago(ICECF). It was developed in 2003 to promote the use of highly energy efficient, clean and safe geothermal technology in commercial application in cooperative territories. ICECF provides the funding for the grants and the AIEC administers the grant program. The funding is re-granted to Illinois electric cooperatives that in turn award the grants to their not-for-profit members.

“We congratulate Stewardson-Strasburg (school) for their decision to use geothermal,” said Darrell Shumard of Shelby Electric Cooperative, who provides electricity to the school.

Stewardson-Strasburg School installed a geothermal system as part of its construction project last summer.  A geothermal system uses the consistent temperature beneath the earth’s surface, about 50 degrees, to heat and cool buildings.  The system can also be used to heat hot water for the facility.

Geothermal system can save the school nearly $47,000 per year in energy costs, which will benefit students, teachers, and the school administration as well as taxpayers. It also provides a more comfortable learning environment for the students.

“It’s already been more cost effective. The payback is really quick,” said Stew-Stras superintendent Steve Harsy.

Nancy Nixon, marketing administrator for the Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives, presented the check to the school.

“The grant is calculated as one-third of the difference between a geothermal system and a standard fossil fuel system up to $50,000. We are happy to award the $50,000 to Stewardson-Strasburg Schools,” Nixon said.

Randy Porter, vice president of the Stew-Stras School Board, said he was pleased with the board’s decision to install the geothermal system.

“It has allowed us to create a comfortable environment for our students. It is one part of our school’s ongoing construction project,” Porter said.

Read the original here:
Stew-Stras Schools Receive $50,000 Energy Grant

Article updated: 2/15/2012 6:23 PM

A new air conditioning unit is delivered last year to Butterfield School in Libertyville. The district is using rebated tax funds for building improvements.

 

Courtesy of Libertyville Elementary District 70

A $67,561 tax windfall doesn?t put the Cook Memorial Public Library District in the category of a lottery winner, but the money is being accepted with the feeling of good fortune.

?We?re just happy to get it when we get it and strive to spend those dollars as wisely as possible,? said Library Director Stephen Kershner.

The cash, an annual rebate from Libertyville?s special taxing district, will be added to the library?s $1 million materials budget used to buy books, databases and other media.

?It?s a little piece, but every dollar helps,? Kershner said.

That a government body is giving back any taxes is worth nothing these days. But Libertyville?s largesse was negotiated three years ago with all the taxing bodies within the tax increment financing district, which covers the downtown area.

In a TIF district, property values are frozen and taxing bodies within it continue to receive the same amount of property taxes even though values increase because of new streets or sidewalks, for example.

Taxes are levied on the increased value, however. That amount, known as the increment, is put in a special fund for improvements in the area.

TIF districts are governed by state law and end after 23 years. But with more work to do, the village sought an extension to 2021. To do that, it needed the approval of all the taxing bodies involved and the state legislature.

Village leaders determined that only 30 percent of the increment would be needed to complete parking improvements envisioned in the original plan.

Those include a recently completed surface parking and streetscape upgrade on the west side of Milwaukee Avenue to complement a parking deck that opened in September 2009. A new deck and/or other parking improvements on the east side of Milwaukee are being pursued.

The carrot for the village was rebating 70 percent of the increment to the taxing bodies. Last year, more than $1.7 million was split.

At the top of the tax increment rebate heap is Libertyville Elementary District 70, which is expected to receive more than $690,000 this year as its share of more than $1.8 million in property taxes the village is rebating to nearly a dozen taxing bodies.

Last year, District 70 used its cut to put new roofs on Copeland Manor and Adler Park schools, install window air conditioners at Rockland School and replace five rooftop cooling units at Butterfield School.

This year, planned work includes installation of automated heating and ventilation controls at each of the five schools. That will allow temperatures to be adjusted remotely for savings on heating costs.

?It gives us funds to make improvements to facilities we probably wouldn?t have been able to do without going to referendum,? said Kurt Valentin, assistant superintendent of finance and operations.

District 70 issued a bond for nearly $4.3 million to fund building improvements and uses about 80 percent of the TIF district rebate to repay that debt. The rest is used for general building improvements.

As it did last year, Libertyville-Vernon Hills Area High School District 128 received the second-highest amount. Most of the nearly $660,000 will be used for building improvements.

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Libertyville gives library, schools rebate