Edgar tables solar panel proposal

Village of Edgar trustees on Monday tabled a proposal to install solar panels on the roof of village hall after multiple questions were raised about the monetary impacts and warranty guarantees offered by the vendor.

Northwinds Solar of Arpin submitted the lowest of three bids for installing a 25.85kilowatt solar array on top of the building at 224 S. Third Ave. The total cost of the project would be $68,970, but after rebates are applied, that amount would fall to $36,213.

The bids came in after the village board voted last month to pursue quotes for the solar installation after learning that Edgar may qualify for a grant from the Hammond Climate Solutions Foundation. If installed, the solar panels are projected to save the village 70 percent on its electrical bills, allowing the project to pay for itself in as little as five years if a grant is awarded.

Before the village can apply for the grant, however, it needs to have an official proposal in hand, according to village administrator Jennifer Lopez. She strongly recommended that any approval of the Northwinds proposal be contingent on the awarding of a Solar Moonshot grant from Hammond.

“We didn’t really budget for this ahead of time, but we do potentially have some budget categories we could draw from to make this happen, if you’re comfortable with that,” she told trustees. “Overall, it would be per- petual electricity savings for the village.”

Before the board could vote on the proposal, however, trustee Jon Streit peppered Lopez with several questions about the village’s responsibility for the ongoing maintenance and upkeep of the solar panels. Streit pointed out a section of the contract that said the solar panels would only have a two-year warranty, and another provision that said the village would be responsible for electrical work and a building inspection.

“I think it’s a great idea, but as a village, we don’t have the money,” he said, before making a motion to table the proposal.

Trustee Jeremy Apfelbeck said he realizes that the solar panels are a separate issue from utility bills, but he thinks residents will question the village spending extra money at this time.

“With the water rates going up, people are going to say ‘Now you’re buying a solar system?’” he said.

Streit tried to rescind his motion to table and make a second motion to deny the proposal, but trustee Patti Schroeder-Schuett said she wanted to maintain her second to the original motion.

“I’d like to know more about it, once all of these questions are answered,” she said. The motion to table passed unanimously, with trustee Mike Butt absent.

Other business

■ The board approved a sign permit for a new “Welcome To Edgar: Wildcat Country” sign to be placed along Third Avenue on the north end of Shortner Athletic Park. A proposal from Stratford Sign Company calls for a nearly 15-foot tall sign with two rows of panels (17 feet wide total) honoring all of Edgar High School’s state championship teams.

Gavin Borchardt, president of the Edgar Wildcat Football Alumni Club, said the sign will include spaces for 24 teams to be listed, with room to add a third row of panels for future state champions. The alumni club has raised enough funds to cover 85 percent of the cost of two signs, Borchardt said, and plans are still being worked out for a second sign on the north end of the village.

■ The board approved a final grant distribution agreement with the USDA’s Rural Development program, with the village agreeing to cover 16 percent of the costs for various wastewater treatment improvements. Lopez said the village was hoping to be able to spend more of the USDA’s contingency money left over from the sewer plant upgrade, but “because of all of the difficulties” within the federal government, the USDA rep said she could only authorize a cost-sharing agreement.

“So, basically, we’re getting a half-million dollars of our grant money, which is still better than nothing, because for awhile she was threatening that we were getting nothing,” Lopez said.

The $506,830 in grant money included in the agreement will be used to help pay for a new ultraviolet disinfection system, which is estimated to cost $364,000, along with $115,830 in additional engineering costs and $65,000 for a lift station on Redwood Street.

■ Engineer Nathan Mzykza of Cooper Engineering told trustees that Staab Construction has finished all of its work on the new wastewater treatment plant, which is now accepting waste from septic haulers, providing a revenue stream for the sewer utility.

“That new component that we’re accepting – the heavier-strength waste – is generating us a lot more money,” Lopez said. “We’ve had a month and a half of those revenues coming in.”

■ Gordon Krall gave the board an update on the Scotch Creek improvement project, providing trustees with cost estimates from Ruekert & Miller, a civil engineering firm, as a comparison to estimates already provided by EOR (Emmons & Oliver Resources). He also presented a phosphorus reduction proposal from Marathon County Conservation Planning and Zoning, modeled after the Fenwood Creek Watershed project.

As far as work being done in the area around the creek, Kroll said the project is at a stage of letting newly planted vegetation grow, with plans to tackle invasive canary grass in the winter.

■ The board approved a request to close a portion of Redwood Street, from Fourth to Fifth Avenue, on Aug. 9 for the annual Chalk Fest event.

■ The board approved a reduction in weekend work hours for public works employees to account for the new level of automation at the wastewater treatment plant. The reduction save the village about $4,900 per year.