Elk Mound schools would receive $60,000 annually from Elk Creek Solar project
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
ELK MOUND — The Elk Mound school district would receive $60,000 per year for 20 years from the Elk Creek Solar Project.
The money to the school district from the Elk Creek Solar project would be considered a charitable donation, said Eric Wright, district administrator, during his report to the Elk Mound Board of Education at the January 16 meeting.
Elk Creek Solar has filed a formal application with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin to build a 300-megawatt solar generating facility with a 76.6 megawatt battery storage system on 2,500 acres in the Town of Spring Brook.
Wright said he had consulted with the school district’s legal counsel to confirm that the annual payment from Elk Creek solar would be considered a donation.
The donation would be under a different category than the money Elk Creek Solar would pay to Dunn County and to the Town of Spring Brook, he said,
State law requires revenue sharing with the county and the Town of Spring Brook. Dunn County would receive $700,000 per year, and the Town of Spring Brook would receive $500,000 per year based on a formula included in state law.
The Elk Mound school district could use the money for whatever needs are identified, and the money would not affect the school district’s revenue limit because it would be a donation, Wright said.
State law limits school districts on the amount of revenue that the school district can collect and limits school district revenue in other ways as well.
For example, school districts receive zero benefit from having a Tax Increment Finance District within the school district, because when the TIF district is closed out and the school district receives the amount of tax revenue that accrued in the TIF account over the past 20 or more years, the state deducts that amount from the state aid the school district will receive.
In a Tax Increment Finance District, the taxing authorities (city or village, school district, county and Chippewa Valley Technical College) still receive the property taxes on the base value but any property taxes generated by improvements in the TIF district , such as residential, commercial or industrial development, go into a special fund that can be used for infrastructure in the TIF district, such roads and sewer and water service.
The donation from Elk Creek Solar would fall in the donation category, and to date, the state has not penalized school districts for receiving donations.
The $60,000 annual donation from Elk Creek Solar would be a welcome infusion of revenue for the Elk Mound school district, Wright said.
As William C. Yingst Jr., Colfax district administrator, has pointed out several times, when the school district is able save a similar amount of money on expenses, such as health insurance, fuel or other line items — “that’s a teacher.”
Construction update
The construction from the district’s $15 million dollar referendum projects still has a few items to complete, Wright said.
The chiller is expected in the spring, and there are still two doors on back order, he said.
The construction has come in under budget, and Wright said he is working with Brian Brewer of Robert W. Baird and Company on how best to return that money to the taxpayers.
The money probably will be used for the debt service payment. The school district has until April 7, 2024, three years from receiving the money, to spend all of the referendum dollars, he said.
There are still construction payments to make yet, and better numbers will be available in the near future, Wright said.
Snow days
Since there have been a few snow days off from school already this year, the Elk Mound school board discussed how to make up those days.
March 20 had previously been scheduled as a professional development day but will now be used as an instruction day, Wright said.
June 2, a Friday, will be the last instructional day of the school year, he said.
April 10, which had been scheduled as a break the day after Easter, will be an instructional day, and if there are more school days, Wright said he will bring the issue back to the school board.
A professional development day was scheduled for the Monday following the school board meeting, and the school board asked about using that day for a make-up school day.
New curriculum is being implemented, and the professional day was necessary for the new curriculum, Wright said.
The hotspots the school district was using for virtual instruction during the COVID pandemic have all been returned, so virtual learning is not really an option for the school district on snow days, he said.
Open enrollment
In additional business on January 16, the Elk Mound Board of Education approved open enrollment spaces for general education and for special education.
For first grade in general education, 15 spaces are available.
For second grade, 25 spaces are available.
For third grade, 20 spaces are available.
For fourth grade, 10 spaces are available.
For fifth grade, 12 spaces are available.
For sixth grade, 10 spaces are available.
For seventh grade, 16 spaces are available.
For eighth grade, 22 spaces are available.
For ninth grade, 20 spaces are available.
For tenth grade, 30 spaces are available.
For eleventh grade, 40 spaces are available.
For twelfth grade 20 spaces are available.
For special education from 4-K through twelfth grade, zero spaces are available.
For elementary speech therapy, occupational therapy, deaf and hard of hearing services, audiology services, interpreter services and transportation services determined by an Individual Educational Plan (IEP), there are zero spaces available.
For middle school and high school speech therapy, one space is available.
The Elk Mound school district does not currently contract with an outside agency for vision services since there are zero students enrolled in the district who require those services per an IEP.
Other business
In other business, the Elk Mound Board of Education:
• Approved three course fee increases for Food Service and Natural Resources classes ranging from $2 to $15 per class. If the course fee increases are a hardship for some families, the school district will figure out a way to help the families cover the increases, Wright said.
• Learned that a Cookies and Canvas event is scheduled at Mound View Elementary for February 6.
• Learned that parent-teacher conferences will be held at Mound View Elementary on February 2 and February 9.
• Learned that fifth and sixth grade students will be taking a special trip to the Badlands Snow Park in Hudson on January 27 and the seventh and eighth grade will be going February 6, weather permitting.
• Learned that a parent meeting for eighth graders was scheduled at 6 p.m. January 23.
• Confirmed that safety drills as per Act 143 had been completed on January 6.
• Approved four students for early graduation. Those students will be able to walk with the Class of 2023 during the graduation ceremony in May.
Following a closed session, the Elk Mound Board of Education approved hiring Asia Weyenberger as special education teacher.
During the closed session, the school board began the annual process for the evaluation of the district administrator’s job performance.
The Elk Mound Board of Education meets next on February 20.
