The Lucerne Valley Unified School District’s five-member Board of Trustees has approved a project that will save the district millions of dollars in energy costs while adding new infrastructure such as state-of-the-art sports field lights at the high’s school Ron Peavy Stadium, upgrades to the HVAC systems, and more.
SiteLogIQ, a “design-build-manage” contractor with more than 25 offices throughout the United States, will manage all aspects of the project. The expected savings are $2,241,255. according to Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Olga Fisher. Much of the savings will come from a reduction in projected electricity costs. Since 1979 the cost of electricity has risen by 311%, according to SiteLogIQ’s K-12 account executive Nick Eddy, “and the last three years have all been double-digit escalation rates.”
Mr. Eddy, project development manager Keegan Gothie and several SiteLogIQ principals were on hand during the company’s presentation at the October 10th school board meeting.
According to the SiteLogIQ representatives, the cost of the project would be helped by the Inflation Reduction Act, which allows the district to obtain a federal tax credit. That tax credit could mean as much as 40% of the project investment would go back to the district, they said.
Project benefits include improved energy efficiency and significant reduction of utility expenses; modernized facilities promoting sustainable learning environments; reduced carbon footprint helping to meet the state’s goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2035; solar additions that provide enhanced outdoor learning environments and/or shade for students in playground/exercise areas; improved lighting for athletic field and walkway; improved air quality with replacement of HVAC units well past their useful life; and upgraded building controls with smart thermostats and remote operation capabilities.
The following are the planned improvements:
MIDDLE/HIGH SCHOOL: SiteLogIQ will install 100 kW / 558 kWh Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to provide demand management and energy arbitrage by working in conjunction with existing solar photovoltaic carport system; replace outdated sports field lighting with new LED fixtures; introduce pathway lighting between sports field and parking lot; upgrade existing building controls to Pelican Wireless TC3 thermostats; replace outdated switchboard for site’s main utility service with new, district-procured switchboard at the Middle/High School campus.
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: The company will install an additional 43.2 kilowatt of solar to offset the meter on the Lucerne Valley Elementary School’s northern end; upgrade existing building controls to the Pelican Wireless TC3 thermostat systems.
DISTRICT OFFICE: At the district office, SiteLogIQ will replace 14 existing heat-up units and upgrade existing building controls to the Pelican Wireless TC3s.
SiteLogIQ plans to tackle some of the projects this school year, such as the stadium lighting. Some of the work will start over winter break. The major work, such as solar and the backup battery, will take approximately 18 months to complete, according to Ms. Fisher.