A Wood Pellet Boiler System Would Save HFCS Money

by Alex Brooks
Hoosick Falls Superintendent of Schools Ken Facin presented to the Board an opportunity to switch the District’s heating plant to a new one fueled by wood pellets on advantageous terms. He said a company called BioEnergy Project Partners LLC (BPP) has secured grant funding from the NY State Energy Research and Development Authority, NYSERDA, to install wood pellet boilers at three sites. [private]Although all three sites had been already signed up, one withdrew recently, so BPP is looking for a new site for their third (grant-funded) project, and the Hoosick Falls District has the opportunity to take that slot if they react quickly.
The proposal is that BPP design and install a wood pellet boiler system sized to handle about 80% to 90% of the heating load. There will be no up-front cost to the District. The installation, expected to cost $500,000 or more, will be paid partly by the NYSERDA grant and partly by lease financing which is eligible for NYS School Building aid. The annual cost of fuel and lease payments during the first ten years while the lease agreement is in effect is expected to be about 80% of what the District is currently paying for oil. After that the savings would probably be greater, because the District would not have the cost of the lease. Wood pellets are currently about half the cost of oil on the basis of BTU equivalency The estimated life of the pellet boiler equipment is 25 years.
The design of the new wood pellet boiler system would be integrated with other HVAC upgrades planned as part of the District’s upcoming Capital Project, so this project would be part of an overall modernization of the District’s heating system.
Timeline
The School Board scheduled a workshop meeting to meet with the engineers from BPP for Thursday, September 26, at 6 pm. The idea is that if the Board wants to take advantage of this opportunity, they need to commit to it rather quickly. Facin’s proposed timeline suggested signing a contract in October, doing detailed engineering work this fall and having NYSED review the design in early 2014 and approve it in time for it to be installed in the summer of 2014.
Facin said that as part of the preparation for the Capital project, his administration and the School Board members on the facilities committee have been looking at all possible alternatives to the current oil fired boiler system because, as a big user of oil, the District is very vulnerable to a spike in the price of oil. Facin remarked that on a cold day, the District can go through 600 to 800 gallons of fuel in a 24 hour period. He said this proposal is by far the best alternative they’ve found. He said you can get a five year contract on wood pellets so there is an opportunity to have stable, predictable fuel prices, which is not possible with oil.
The Board will learn more when they meet with the engineers this week, but, after the first presentation, they seemed very favorably disposed to the pellet boiler proposal.
Last Minute Enrollment
Facin said that in the last few weeks 17 new special education students have come into the District. He said he welcomes all students into the District, and said, “We are glad to have them,” but he added that the District has significant new responsibilities to meet the needs of these students. He asked the Board to authorize hiring one new full time teacher, half time for the elementary school and half time for the high school, to do ESL and AIS teaching. This position was not budgeted. Facin said the District is carrying an unrestricted fund balance of about $850,000, so the additional cost can be absorbed by that. He said the cost would be about $88,000 including benefits. The Board agreed and passed a resolution by a vote of 5-0 to add the two half time positions.
Skott Resigns
School Board Member Don Skott handed the Board President his letter of resignation during the meeting. The Board voted to accept his resignation with regret, and Facin and several of his fellow Board members thanked Skott for his service to the Board and his important contributions over the last few years.
Independent Audit
Heather Mowat from The Bonadio Group, the District’s auditing contractor, attended the meeting to present the findings of her firm’s audit of the District’s finances. Auditors use a very specialized language when reporting their findings. Mowat said there were “no significant findings” in their audit, and they were able to give an “unqualified opinion.” These bland sounding phrases are actually the highest praise that auditors can offer, and Mowat tried to convey that her firm was actually very impressed with the soundness of the District’s financial practices. She elaborated, saying that her firm found “no deficiencies, no issues, no problems,” and explained that it is fairly rare for an audit to find no problems whatsoever. She said, “this is the highest form of assurance you can get” from an audit.
Board President Greg Laurin said he has seen a lot of audits over the years and “this is the best one I’ve ever seen.”
Code Of Conduct
Facin said the Board and the administration have been getting a lot of response to the recently released Code of Conduct update. The District will be setting up a Code of Conduct committee to discuss these issues and prepare for next year’s update. It would like to have representation from students, parents, teachers, Board members and community members, and it asks those who are interested in joining such a committee to contact the District Office by Friday, October 11, so a committee can be formed at that time.
STAR Registration
Facin said the Basic STAR exemption now requires registration with the NYS tax department. He said if people are having trouble registering, they can use the school computers to do so, and school administrators are willing to help people get registered. He invited residents of the District to call the District Office if they need this kind of assistance.
Mentors
The Board approved the appointments for the upcoming school year of Dan Severson as a mentor/consultant for Mario Torres, Dean of Discipline, and Michael Kardash as mentor/consultant for Tom Husser, Coordinator of Interscholastic Athletics, both at the rate of $50 per hour. Torres and Husser are both recently appointed to their positions, and the idea is to give them access to people with a great deal of experience in their area during their first year. Kardash is recently retired as AD in Stillwater, and Severson is an experienced school administrator.
In other business, the Board
• approved a request to start a debate team in the High School;
• accepted a donation of five backpacks full of school supplies, valued at $125, from School Systems Federal Credit Union. They will be distributed to students by the school social worker based on need.[/private]